


A Distant Shore

by mathspook777



Category: Frozen (2013)
Genre: Drama, Fantasy, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-03-29
Updated: 2015-04-05
Packaged: 2018-03-20 09:57:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 53,358
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3645987
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mathspook777/pseuds/mathspook777
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A rebellion stirs in Arendelle and threatens to unseat Elsa. What could motivate such treachery? Anna discovers herself playing an unwilling part in their schemes, and Kristoff tries to defend the family from an unwanted savior.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Orange leaves cluttered the castle courtyard, and a chill was in the twilight air. A fire roared in the dining room. Elsa and Anna laughed.

"So I asked him, 'Do you know who you're trying to sell ice to?'" said Kristoff. "And he said, 'Why should that matter? Everyone needs ice.'"

Elsa and Anna laughed again. Dinner was nearly over. As the servants entered with the last course, Anna waved them away. "No dessert for me," said Anna. She looked at her belly, but she wasn't showing yet. "Healthy. I have to eat healthy for you. You're going to be the best baby ever."

Elsa smiled. "Come on. The baby will understand."

"I'm not going to let your sweet tooth tempt me."

"It has chocolate." Elsa gestured to the servants, and they set a tiny dish of chocolate ice cream in front of Anna.

Anna folded her arms. "It's sabotage."

"Delicious sabotage," said Kristoff, already licking his spoon. "I, on behalf of our baby, hereby give you permission to eat a scoop of chocolate ice cream."

"There's two scoops here."

"I'll eat the other one, since you don't want it."

Kristoff reached his spoon towards Anna's dish, but she moved it away. "It's not yours."

"Oh, so you do want it."

Anna slouched in her chair. "You're not being a supportive husband."

Elsa chuckled. "You're adorable when you're trying to do things for your baby."

"I have to be perfect for her. I am going to be the perfect mama."

Elsa gave Anna a quizzical look. "Why is the baby a her?"

"I have to take care of her, you see, because I'm the mama. I don't know how to raise a boy, because we never had any brothers. So it's going to be a girl." Elsa rolled her eyes. "And she's never going to cry, she's just going to giggle and smile all the time."

"And you'll have someone else change the diapers, I'm sure."

"The perfect mama is not above changing diapers."

"We'll see how long that lasts," said Kristoff. "Before you know it, you'll be looking for a wet nurse."

"I'll change one diaper, just to see how it's done," said Elsa. "But you'll be mostly on your own in that adventure."

"Just you wait," said Anna. "You have a baby and see how you feel."

"No, that's never going to happen. No husband and no kids for me. I have the two of you and Olaf. Besides, running the kingdom makes me feel like a mother sometimes. It's my duty to care for the people the way a mother cares for her children."

"It's not the same," said Anna.

"It's close enough for me. And even if it weren't," Elsa said, swirling the wine in her glass, "who would I marry?"

"I used to know some guys who liked ice," said Kristoff.

Elsa laughed. "Even so, a husband would just get in the way. Well, mostly. I can't produce an heir on my own, but I have you two to help with that."

Kristoff said, "I worry about how people will react. There are still people who don't think I'm fit to be here, much less fit to father royalty."

"They're getting used to you. You're not just an ice deliverer anymore. You're Lord Kristoff Bjorgman, Baron of the Valley of the Living Rock. You have money and connections. And you're part of the royal family, so you're a prince whether or not they like it."

"I know. I trust you. I'm just pointing out, again, that I can't provide the breeding they want from a royal."

"You're talking about yourself like a reindeer," said Anna, squeezing Kristoff's hand. "We're not going to wait for the aristocracy to start liking you. The kingdom needs an heir. Besides, I know you enjoyed it." Kristoff turned red.

 

Friedrich, count of Telramund, paced the halls of his manor. Usually news traveled slowly in Arendelle's winter, but the announcement he had just received was only two days old: Crown Princess Anna was pregnant. Rumor had turned into nightmare.

The root of the trouble had been the queen's parents. Telramund didn't know what they had done to spawn a sorceress for a daughter. Perhaps it hadn't been their fault. But they were to blame for sheltering her instead of exterminating her, and now the kingdom was suffering. Princess Anna was suffering.

Telramund had always supposed that the sorceress's domination of Arendelle would end some day. She was mortal like everyone else, and when she was gone from Earth, Arendelle would be safe, or so he had thought. She must have been infertile herself, or else she and her conspirator, the iceman, would have begotten children of their own already. Instead the sorceress had forced her sister to do the deed. Telramund clenched his fists, and his veins pulsated with fury. The child would be groomed from babyhood to take over the throne. The sorceress and the iceman would train her in the ways of dark magic, and their lineage of evil would dominate Arendelle for centuries to come.

Soon after the gates had opened, Telramund had attempted to ingratiate himself with the royal family. He had recognized that Princess Anna needed protection from the sorceress, and he had thought that he could provide it. He had been rejected. The sorceress and the iceman had already poisoned Anna's mind, turning her against him. Anna had been left unguarded, and now she was the victim of their monstrous lust for power.

Telramund entered the living room. In front of the blazing hearth, his three year old son played with a toy wooden reindeer. The reindeer galloped across the floor, up a chair leg, leaped to a wall, and began galloping upwards. Telramund picked his son up and hugged him. The reindeer galloped across his shoulder and onto his head. "Alexander," he asked, "what do you want to be when you're big like papa is?"

"A reindeer."

"How about king? Would you like to be king?"

Alexander shook his head. "I wanna be a reindeer."

"Sometimes we need kings. Even reluctant kings." Telramund put Alexander down, sat facing the fire in his chair, and pondered.

 

The mid-morning winter sun beamed into Elsa's study. Her desk was covered with papers: Tax reports, proposed laws, diplomatic missives, petitions from the people, all in tidy stacks. She picked up another sheet, a letter from the Bishop. Christmas was coming, he wrote, and he was appealing to her for a special donation of alms like she had made in past years. She nodded and scribbled a note to herself. Her people would neither go hungry nor freeze.

Elsa set the Bishop's letter aside and picked up another, this one from Duke Borgstrom. "I must express my strongest disapproval of the direction your reign has taken," it began. Another one, she thought. Since the announcement of Anna's pregnancy there had been an unceasing stream of hostile letters. "Your father left a strong kingdom, but the Royal Army has failed to provide us adequate defenses against highwaymen for several years now." That was odd; as far as she knew Arendelle didn't have any problems with highwaymen. "Consequently I am forced to levy an independent regiment. As I am personally funding and organizing this regiment, it will come under my personal leadership and will not be part of the Royal Army. I am writing to ensure that my actions will not be misconstrued. I reassert and vigorously proclaim my loyalty to Arendelle." Private armies were considered a threat to the Crown and were illegal in Arendelle. The highwaymen must be fiction. The letter may as well have announced that the Duke planned to commit treason.

Elsa sighed. The Duke's letter was worse, but no different in kind, from letters that she received every day now. Anyone who gave a reason for their discontent pointed at Anna and Kristoff. Elsa hadn't expected the reaction to Anna's pregnancy to be so hateful. Perhaps she had been spending so much time around Anna and Kristoff that she was blind to how others saw them. Was it so bad that Anna had married a former peasant? Their wedding had not provoked outrage at the time. Perhaps there was a secret agitator, maybe even a conspiracy.

Elsa rose and stood in front of the window. Sunlight glistened on the cool and beautiful snow. She was, she reminded herself, queen. The people, most of them at least, loved her, and as long as they loved her, she would remain queen. Their love was a more powerful force than petty sneers.

Anna knocked at the door. "Elsa? May I come in?"

"Please," Elsa said.

Anna entered, brisk despite her pregnancy. Recently she had had the seams on her dress let out to accommodate the growing baby and the weight she was gaining. The baby was expected to quicken within a week or two. She joined Elsa at the window.

"How are you?" asked Elsa.

"Feeling great today. Look, I just got a weird letter." She held out several sheets of paper to Elsa.

"Who's it from?"

"Do you remember that count from a couple years ago who said he wanted to give you advice? The one with the young son? Telramund?"

"The one who was fixated on you? What does he want?"

"That's the strange part. Here, take a look."

The letter began with a florid greeting to Anna. Even for a letter to the Crown Princess it seemed disingenuous. Then he began discussing his son as if Anna were a close friend who had long been out of touch. When Anna and Elsa had last seen Telramund, his son had been an infant. Now his son was a toddler, and Telramund proudly recounted his ability to stack wooden blocks and draw pictures. He then inquired about Anna's pregnancy and described ways to ease some of its symptoms, emphasizing the comforts that his late wife had liked. His wife, Elsa remembered, had died from childbirth the year before Elsa's coronation. Finally, Telramund offered his assistance to Anna, both for advice in child rearing "and in whatever other matters I might be able to benefit the royal household."

"What do you think?" asked Anna.

"Do you write to him much?"

"Never."

"What an odd letter."

"Yeah, I can't figure it out. Why tell me all of that?"

"I don't know. At least he doesn't hate you or Kristoff." Elsa pursed her lips. "It must be political somehow. He's probing us about something."

"Why would he write all of this personal stuff then?"

"He wants to know if he can trust us about something, something private. Maybe he's on our side. How about you invite him to visit?"

 

The next week, Telramund visited the court. He was tall, black haired with dark brown eyes, and in his early thirties. Elsa and Anna received him in the throne room. He entered the throne room, bowed, advanced halfway to the dais, bowed again, came to the foot of the dais, and bowed a third time. "Your Majesty," he said to Elsa in a resonant baritone voice. "Your Highness," he said to Anna. "It gladdens my heart to see you."

"As it does ours," said Elsa. "You've been away from the court for many years."

"My deepest apologies for that, Ma'am. I have found my time much in demand, especially with my son having no mother."

"A terrible tragedy," said Elsa.

"Yes," said Telramund wistfully.

"Well, this is awkward," said Anna. "Let's change the subject. Did your son like the journey?"

"Alexander found it very exciting, Ma'am. He's rarely traveled outside the county, and never so far."

"I understand that he likes reindeer."

"Very much, Ma'am. He spent half the journey watching the reindeer pulling us and not looking at the countryside."

"Would he like to meet one while he's here?"

"He would like nothing better."

"Perfect! Where is he? We can meet Sven right away."

"He fell asleep on the journey. He's resting."

"Oh, he must be very cute."

"I don't mean to brag, Ma'am, but I do agree."

"I'd love to meet him when he wakes up. He must be a delight to play with."

Telramund bowed. "I will have him sent to you the moment he wakes."

 

Anna brought plenty of carrots with her when she took Alexander to the stable. She said, "My husband Kristoff taught me how to speak reindeer. So we can talk to Sven." Alexander's eyes went wide. "You'll see." When they arrived at Sven's stall, Sven, speaking through Anna, introduced himself and asked for carrots. Whenever Alexander held one out, Sven reached out his wet tongue and sucked it from Alexander's hand. Alexander shrieked and giggled every time.

At dinner, Telramund made pleasant conversation. He told stories about his service in the Royal Army, about romancing his late wife, and about Alexander's occasional antics. Years ago, Elsa had not considered his offer to be an adviser seriously because of his obvious attraction to Anna. It had looked more like a ploy for Anna's hand than a desire to serve his queen, and Anna was already devoted to Kristoff. Telramund appeared to have overcome his feelings, however, since he directed no more attention to Anna than to Elsa or Kristoff.

After dinner they moved to the sitting room, gathering around the hearth. "Kai," asked Elsa, "mead brandy for myself and our guest."

"Myself also," said Kristoff.

"Tea," said Anna.

Kai returned with three glasses of mead brandy and a cup of tea. "A toast," said Elsa, raising her glass, "to loyalty." The four of them raised their glasses and drank. "I'm curious, Count Telramund, to know why you've chosen to renew your friendship with us now."

"Your Majesty, the royal family and the future of the kingdom are in my thoughts every day."

"If so," said Kristoff, "then why now?"

Telramund turned to Elsa. "Your Majesty, I have heard some disturbing rumors of intrigue in the kingdom."

Elsa raised her eyebrows. This was what Telramund was here for. "Even outlandish rumors can have a kernel of truth," she said. "Please tell us what you've heard."

"I received a letter from Duke Borgstrom," Telramund said. Not a lie, he reminded himself. Only a half-truth. "He wrote about the need to defend himself from what he called 'troublemakers,' and he said that he was preparing to levy an army this spring."

"The duke wrote to me himself with this information," said Elsa. "He says that he needs defenses against highwaymen, and he made no secret of his displeasure with the Royal Army."

Telramund shook his head. "A deceit, I'm afraid. He intends to march on the castle."

Anna said, "Why would he do that? Everybody knows Elsa could do, well, something or other. Trap his army in ice, I guess."

"That," Telramund said, "seems to be where the intrigue lies. Borgstrom is looking for support. He seems to think that if enough people oppose the queen, she will have no choice but to step aside."

"Leaving him to become king?" asked Elsa.

"It's a safe presumption."

"No, it still doesn't make sense," said Anna. "He knows Elsa can beat him."

Telramund nodded. "Alone, yes. But he suggested that I conscript an army too. An independent army, separate from his."

"How does that help him?"

"Because she can only be in one place at a time. One of us will be free to maneuver."

Kristoff grimaced. "I agree with Anna. It still doesn't make sense. Elsa can't be defeated in battle, and as long as she's alive, she's queen. So what if one of you rampages across the countryside? You'll just make people hate you."

Elsa shook her head. "No, it's clever. I can't slay a whole army or people will be horrified. I have to make them surrender. While I'm occupied with one army, the second one could attack anyone that supports us. They could even attack the castle. If I try to stop them, then I have to leave the first army. Enough of that and everyone will beg me to surrender."

"Even if that's true, and don't count me as convinced, there's something else that bothers me," said Kristoff. Turning to Telramund, he asked, "Why you? Why would he tell you his plans?"

"We've known each other for a long time," said Telramund. "I served under him in the Royal Army when we were young, and we've been friends ever since. We visit each other, we go hunting together. He helped me grieve when my wife died."

"So you're betraying your friend."

"And remaining loyal to my queen."

"Thank you, Count," said Elsa, "for your faithfulness."

Telramund shook his head. "I appreciate the praise, Your Majesty, but I must admit to selfishness. I worry about Alexander's future. Do I want him to serve a wicked monarch? No," he said. "Dante reserved the lowest circle of hell for the treacherous. I do not relish treachery, but I must be either a traitor to my friend or a traitor to my kingdom."

"Well, as Defender of the Faith I'm not supposed to approve of selfishness, and certainly not of treachery. But in this case," said Elsa, smiling, "I think there's no need for an act of contrition."

"Thank you, Ma'am."

"You've given us much to discuss. Is there anything more?"

"Only that I don't know to whom else he may have written, nor what he might have said to them."

"I see."

Telramund rose. "I crave your pardon, Ma'am, but I am feeling rather tired after my journey. Please allow me to retire for the evening." He finished his brandy. "I bid you good night."

Telramund left Elsa, Anna, and Kristoff sitting around the hearth. "Well? What do you think?" asked Elsa.

"It's a tricky plan," said Kristoff.

"Would you really do it?" asked Anna.

Elsa shook her head. "I swore to defend Arendelle, so I can't surrender. But the scheme is clever. As long as neither army surrenders I can't win on my own. We'd need to defeat one of them the conventional way."

"That assumes there really are two armies," said Kristoff. "If he was supposed to lead the second army, and he doesn't--" He shrugged. "No problem."

"Unless there's a third army," said Elsa. "He said he didn't know who else Borgstrom had written to. Lots of people have written me angry letters."

"I kinda wish we hadn't done it," said Anna. "Tried for a baby, I mean. Oh, I'm terrible mama!" She slumped in her chair and put a hand on her belly. "Sorry," she said to the baby. "I still love you." 

Kristoff held her hand. "It's not our fault they don't like her."

Anna gave him a weak smile. "Thanks." She sighed. "But what do we do?"

"Either he's holding back, or he doesn't know," said Kristoff, "but either way I don't think we know what's really going on."

"I believe him when he says that Borgstrom is planning to revolt," said Elsa. "We need to stop him before his army marches."

"So arrest him," said Anna.

"I'd need to charge him with a crime. I can't look like a tyrant, not now of all times."

"What about the letter?" said Anna. "Isn't it proof of treason?"

Elsa nodded. "That would do. Yes, it's perfect. Tomorrow I can ask Telramund for the letter." Then she frowned. "I doubt Borgstrom will go quietly. But maybe we can limit the destruction."

 

Elsa's study was, for a queen, surprisingly small. From where Telramund stood in the doorway, it was only a few paces to the window. To his left he could see the edge of an ornately carved desk piled with books and papers. "Come in, Count," he heard.

As Telramund entered, frosty air bit him in the face. Behind the desk and in front of a row of bookshelves sat Elsa in a high backed chair carved with Arendelle's crest. He turned around until he found the fireplace. It was unlit, even spotless. Its disuse reminded him again that Elsa was the devil's work. He turned back to the desk and sat opposite her.

"Good morning, Your Majesty," said Telramund.

"Good morning to you, too," said Elsa. "I hope you found your rooms accommodating last night."

"Very," said Telramund.

"We'd like your assistance. You said that Borgstrom had written you an incriminating letter."

"Yes, Ma'am."

"We'd like to see this letter for ourselves. It seems worthy of investigation."

"I anticipated as much, Ma'am. I had a copy of the letter made for myself, and I brought the original with me." He reached into his coat pocket and found the letter that he and Borgstrom had prepared. "You may keep it."

Elsa thumbed through the letter. At first glance, at least, it appeared to be what Telramund claimed it was. "Yes, this is quite helpful. Yes." She looked up. "You have been of great service to Arendelle, Count."

Telramund bowed his head. "Thank you, Ma'am. I wonder if I could be of any further service to you."

"What do you have in mind?"

"Borgstrom wrote to me asking me to levy an army. Perhaps I should play along."

Elsa paused. This was not something they had considered last night. "Hold on. Where in the letter did he suggest this?"

"The last page, Ma'am."

Elsa scanned the page. As Telramund had said, Borgstrom suggested that Telramund conscript an army and march it on the "troublemakers." Elsa frowned. She didn't want armies running amok over Arendelle, but neither did she want Borgstrom to know that Telramund had come to her. She felt anxiety rising in her chest, a cold snake coiling itself around her heart. She had seen her father make snap decisions like this, and he had been calm, confident, and resolute. How had he done it?

"We will give you instructions later," Elsa said.

"As Your Majesty wishes," said Telramund. Elsa's chair now had a thin coat of ice. She felt insecure over this decision. Good. If she asked him not to levy an army, she would doubt herself when he did. "Perhaps I should give you time to study the letter."

"That would be most welcome."

After Telramund left, Elsa leaned back in her chair and looked at the portrait of her father that hung over the fireplace. She sighed. She had messed up. It had been an obvious question, and she should have had an answer to it. They could easily have discussed it last night, but she had forgotten to and had been surprised by it instead. She still wasn't very good at being queen, she thought. Papa wouldn't have made that mistake.

Elsa still didn't know what to do. As she read the letter, her thoughts drifted. What would happen if Telramund had a private army? It would be a return to medieval times, almost like having knights on horseback. Arendelle was supposed to be past that. In principle, she ruled by divine right, and all power was centralized in the crown. Military power had been centralized for a hundred years or more. Allowing Telramund to have an army would undermine that. It would be a long-term threat to the government, and it didn't seem to give her any advantage. So what if Borgstrom thought that Telramund wasn't cooperating? It might make him back down. It wouldn't encourage him.

Telramund's behavior was strange, Elsa thought. She barely knew him, yet he was betraying his friend to her and asking nothing in exchange. Why? Did he want her to be indebted to him? Was he going to ask her for something?

Anna burst through the door. "Elsa!" she squealed. She raced to Elsa's side. "Feel this!" She grabbed Elsa's hand and placed it on her belly.

"What?"

"Just wait."

Elsa looked up at Anna. Her eyes were glowing, and she had a huge grin. Then Elsa felt it: A tiny jolt beneath her hand. "The baby's kicking!" she said.

Anna squealed again. "Isn't it wonderful? Oh, I'm so happy!" She leaned forward and wrapped Elsa in a hug. But as her elbow brushed against the chair back, she stopped and frowned. "Wait. No no no, wait just a minute. What's wrong?"

"Huh?"

"The ice. On your chair." Anna grabbed Elsa's hands. "Cold. What happened? What's wrong?"

Elsa looked at her chair and saw the ice for the first time. She shuddered. She had lost control again. "I don't know. I was just sitting here thinking."

"About what?"

"Telramund was just here, and I didn't handle him very well. And that made me think about Papa." Frost streaked out from underneath her chair. "Papa could have put down a rebellion better than I can."

Anna sat on the desk. "He never had to deal with anything like this."

Elsa shook her head. "I don't mean it like that. I mean, when he was in public, Papa always looked like he was in charge. Nobody questioned him. He could've said, 'Stop,' and people would've stopped just because he said so."

"When he used to sit me down and talk to me about ruling, he was never that confident. He was stumbling through it the same as you are now."

"I know, that's what he always told me, too. But people trusted him. They don't trust me. I'm too young and I caused a freak winter."

"Only once, and you've done fine since then." Anna put her arms on Elsa's shoulders. "Look, you're very hard on yourself, the same as Papa was. You're trying to be the best ruler Arendelle has ever known. You need to keep trying, because Arendelle deserves that, and you're the only one who can give it to her. But we all make mistakes, sometimes big ones. You need to remember that people will forgive them. They won't forgive them because you thought you were doing the right thing or because you were trying hard or because it turned out okay in the end. They'll forgive you because they love you, and they love you for who you are, not for what you do. So calm down. Everything is already okay."

Elsa looked up her little sister. Anna looked firm, even intimidating. "Thanks, Anna," Elsa said.

"Are you feeling better?"

"Yeah."

"Good." Anna leaned forward, and they shared an embrace. "Love you, sis."

"You too."

As Anna watched the ice on Elsa's chair vanish, she broke into a smile. "It worked! I've been preparing that speech for weeks."

"Weeks? Have I really been that bad?"

"Well, I was preparing it for the baby"--Anna patted her bump--"in case she turns out to be serious like you are."

Elsa laughed. "I hope she never needs to hear it. She's more likely to take after Mama like you do."

"Kristoff can be serious, too. It could still happen."

"Maybe," said Elsa. "But speaking of serious business, Telramund gave me the original of Borgstrom's letter." She grabbed the letter from her desk. "Look right here. It's just like Telramund was saying last night."

Anna read the last page of the letter and nodded. "So I guess we arrest him now."

"We try to. I wanted to put Kristoff in charge. I'll give him some soldiers and see if he can make Borgstrom come peacefully."

Anna grimaced. "Does it have to be Kristoff? I don't like it when he goes away."

"I think it does. We need to send someone important so that he knows we're serious. It can't be me or you, and Kristoff's the next best choice."

"Ugh. Did you ask him yet?"

"No, I was waiting to see Borgstrom's letter. But now we're ready." She rang for Kai. "Can I send Kristoff away immediately, or do you want me to wait?"

"I guess send him now, or as soon as he can go."

Kai entered. "Your Majesty," he said, bowing.

"Kai, find Kristoff and ask him to come here. We have something important for him to do."

 

The back of Kristoff's neck itched. His coat was made of wool; good wool and finely tailored, but still wool, and wool itched. He wanted practical and comfortable leather, but royal envoys didn't dress in leather. They dressed in wool. Itchy, itchy wool.

Kristoff shrugged his shoulders, trying to shift his coat collar away from his neck without upsetting his balance on his horse. That was another problem with being a royal envoy. Envoys rode horses, not reindeer. Sven was back at the castle.

Kristoff and a sergeant were riding through the town around Borgstrom's castle. They were trailed on foot by a dozen privates. The castle, hundreds of years old, had been built to command a bend in the river. Its central tower loomed like a giant over the frozen water. "Time has passed this place by," said the sergeant.

"Why do you say that?" asked Kristoff.

"It must have been a good fort in the old days of lords and ladies," said the sergeant, "but now? Lay siege to it with artillery and it'll fall within days."

Kristoff nodded as he looked up at the weathered tower. "A power unimaginable to the original architect."

"It was sound thinking at the time. A thick wall, a big tower, a commanding view of the river. It must have seemed impenetrable."

"Maybe that's why we're here. Living in a castle might make you feel unconquerable."

"I wouldn't know, Sir. But do you see right there, where the snow has built up?" He pointed at the battlement on top of the tower, at a crumbling embrasure. "There's a gap in the wall where someone could fall through." He snorted. "The queen would never allow us to neglect our fortifications that way."

Kristoff nodded again. The sergeant's tone was familiar, even affectionate. Perhaps he had met Elsa when she opened the castle to visitors during festivals. Was his devotion ordinary, or had Kristoff merely been assigned the most loyal men available?

They arrived at the castle gate. The drawbridge was down, but the portcullis was lowered. "Hello!" called Kristoff to the gate.

A guard appeared on the battlement on top of the gatehouse. "State your business," he said.

"I am Baron Kristoff Bjorgman of the Valley of the Living Rock, prince of Arendelle." He would never get used to his title, but it was important here. "The queen has sent me to meet with the duke."

"Wait here," said the guard.

Kristoff, the sergeant, and the privates waited. A few townspeople were watching. At last a stout man with a trimmed beard appeared on the battlement. "I am the duke," he said. "What do you want?"

"I bear greetings from Queen Elsa, and I request an audience."

Borgstrom raised an eyebrow. "Oh? What does she have to say to me?"

"The queen asked me to keep the matter quiet. I'd prefer to discuss this privately."

"So she hopes to hide it."

"Your Grace," said Kristoff, "Queen Elsa has granted me the authority to speak freely on her behalf. I won't hide anything from you."

"Then stop hiding right now. Tell me what you want."

"If Your Grace would allow me to confer with him privately--"

"No."

Kristoff hesitated. Elsa's orders had been very specific. He was supposed to arrest Borgstrom without letting anyone know what was happening. If Borgstrom wouldn't agree to come, Kristoff was to attempt to negotiate terms for Borgstrom's future surrender. If Borgstrom refused, Kristoff was to return home. There was to be no confrontation, not here where it would be on Borgstrom's terms.

By now there was a crowd of onlookers. Kristoff said, "I'll be in town. I still hope to meet with you."

Borgstrom snorted, and, without even saying farewell, disappeared from the battlement.

"Seems we should find an inn," said the sergeant.

 

The next morning, Kristoff had just gotten his shirt on when the sergeant knocked. "Enter," said Kristoff.

"Hope I'm not bothering you, Sir," said the sergeant.

"Not at all, come in."

"Last night I heard something I thought you'd want to know."

"What's that?"

"The castle gate is normally left open. But yesterday, when the town guard heard that we were here, they closed it right up."

"They closed it for us?"

"So I heard."

"I guess that's no surprise, seeing how they treated us yesterday. It doesn't look good for our mission." Kristoff began putting on his vest.

"I hope you don't mind me saying, Sir, but it seems that folks here don't appreciate the royal family the way they ought to."

"We wouldn't be here if they did." Kristoff grabbed his coat. "Let's see if they're in a better mood today."

 

The castle gate was closed again. "Seems unchanged, Sir," said the sergeant.

"This is useless, but here goes." Kristoff called to the gate, "Hello!"

The same guard as yesterday appeared on the battlement. "State your business," he said.

"It's us again."

"The duke's not available."

"When will he be?"

"You ought to go."

Kristoff scratched his head. "Say again?"

"I said, you're not welcome here."

Kristoff hesitated again. Elsa hadn't said what he should do if the duke wouldn't even meet with him. But she had also given him the freedom to improvise.

"You're the duke's man, aren't you?"

"Why would that concern you?"

"Is the duke loyal to the queen?"

The guard paused. "The duke speaks for himself."

"Not to me he doesn't. But what do you think? Is the duke loyal to the queen?"

"Like I said, ask him yourself."

"I'm a representative of Arendelle. You're the duke's man, the duke is the queen's man, and I'm the queen's envoy. It's your duty to let me in."

The guard glared at Kristoff. "Wait here."

The guard's expression disheartened Kristoff. He had been hoping for a hint of loyalty. As he, the sergeant, and the privates waited, a crowd gathered to watch them. Kristoff glanced at them but found their attention uncomfortable. He turned back to the castle, where he could see no movement.

After a very long time, an officer appeared on the battlement. "The duke won't see you. We have orders to keep you out."

"Wait, what?"

"You're not stupid. You heard me the first time, now go."

The officer stared at them. Kristoff stared back. "Tell the duke that the queen is displeased."

 

"So we're going to war," said Elsa.

"Yeah," said Kristoff.

Elsa, Anna, and Kristoff were gathered in the sitting room, seated around the fireplace. "We can't talk him down?" asked Elsa.

Kristoff shrugged. "If you think he'll talk to you, go ahead and try."

"I want to believe that he can still redeem himself."

"I'd like to believe that too," said Anna, "but he doesn't sound very friendly."

"Not at all," said Kristoff. "It's like he wants a fight."

"Well," see Elsa, "I guess we can give him that."

A gloomy silence covered to the room. Elsa didn't want to go to war. War meant death, and death meant children losing their parents. The children would cry themselves to sleep and pretend that their parents would still return. When their crying was over, they would rebuke themselves for not loving their parents enough to keep crying. They would imagine that some small, insignificant action of theirs, something as simple as asking, "Please don't go," could have saved their parents, and their failure to save their parents would make them burn with shame and regret. Their days would be filled with rage and fear, and their dreams would be swallowed by despair.

"Can we stop him right now?" asked Elsa. "Do you think we could take the castle in winter?"

Kristoff shook his head. "As long as he's in that castle we can't get to him without artillery, and artillery can't cross the roads until spring."

"I couldn't blast through the gate?"

"Once you were inside, you'd be vulnerable from all directions. It's made to stop that kind of attack."

"Elsa could tear the castle down," said Anna. "Couldn't you?"

"You mean blow it up?" asked Elsa. "Like a keg of black powder would?" Elsa knit her brow. "I can't do that. It would kill them all, and even if they're rebelling I won't slaughter them."

"I was thinking of taking it apart brick by brick."

"That's too slow," said Kristoff. "They'd have time to counterattack. We'd need to occupy the whole town to keep her safe, and that requires more troops than we can move in winter."

"That's easy enough," said Anna. "Can't you just make an army of snowmen?"

"I could never get them to execute a careful military operation," said Elsa. "They're not deep thinkers. If they're big enough to be dangerous, they'd just destroy the town. Besides which, it's better politics if I show up with an army. It makes me look like I have people's support."

"Maybe we do wait until spring," said Kristoff.

"I don't like it," said Elsa.

"Me neither," said Anna. The silent gloom returned while they pondered their options. "Can I just say something?" said Anna. "You can't go there. At all. They want to hurt you, which is not okay. We can't give them that opportunity."

Elsa thought aloud. "So we wait until spring. He marches. I meet him in an open field as quickly as I can and trap his army in ice. I keep him in ice until he surrenders. We arrest him and go home. Would that work?"

"He won't meet you in an open field," said Kristoff. "He'll stick to the forest."

"What about the city and the castle?" asked Anna. "If there's a second army, then I'm just worried about, well, spring is not the best timing for me. Because I expect to move as well as an overturned vegetable cart. I'm not going to be able to attack or retreat or anything."

"We'll need troops stationed in the city," said Kristoff. "The navy will have to guard the fjord. That should keep us safe here, even from a second army. Then I guess we just hold out until Elsa can force Borgstrom to surrender."

"If it comes to that, then I really will destroy him," said Elsa. "But I don't like that thought. Come to think of it, I got another letter from Telramund. He was asking again if he should levy an army like Borgstrom asked him to."

"Do you want to say yes?" asked Kristoff. "Because that idea is terrible."

"I don't want to rebuff him entirely. He's been helpful to us, and I want him to feel valuable."

"You already have something in mind."

"No. I wish I did. We can't let him have a private army, but he seems eager to do something."

"Oh, I know," said Anna. "Give him a commission in the Royal Army and assign him to defend his own county."

"That's a good idea. He was already in the army once. Maybe he wants to be in battle again."

"Anyone who wants that awful thrill is a fool," said Kristoff.

"Or maybe just loyal to us," said Elsa. "I'll make him, hmm, let's say a colonel. He can muster troops if he wants, but they'll join the Royal Army and be under our command."

"That isn't much better than him having a private army," said Kristoff.

"No, it's a lot better. The men will be sworn to the service of the kingdom, not to him, and they'll be part of the usual chain of command," said Elsa. "If I can't trust my subjects, who can I trust?"


	2. Chapter 2

Elsa began her military preparations before the snow had melted. If her army could maneuver Borgstrom into the open, then she could entrap Borgstrom in ice. She believed that he would try to stay in fortified positions where he could withstand a siege or in cover where he would be hard to find. Flushing him out, therefore, would require a conventional army large enough to defend her while she slowly tore apart a fortification, yet nimble enough to fight in the forest.

By the time the spring thaw had begun, conscripts had been mustered near the castle, and supply wagons had been loaded with materiel. Elsa's spies reported that Borgstrom was doing the same. There was no evidence of other armies, unless you counted the few men that Telramund had recruited. Men who supported the rebellion were traveling to join Borgstrom's army. Elsa was surprised, but it made her confident. "I'll be back in a month," she said.

"Try to hurry up," said Anna. "You know I'm due in a week, and I want you here with me."

"I'll do my best. Love you." They hugged goodbye.

The roads were muddy from the thaw and the spring rain, and the wagons' progress was slow. Elsa had considered delaying the expedition until the roads were better, but she had settled on pressing forward as soon as possible. Starting earlier gave Borgstrom less time to cause trouble, and she desperately wanted to avoid casualties. Her most fundamental duty as queen, she thought, was the defense of her subjects. Usually that defense was indirect, through making laws, fairly administering justice, and maintaining a robust military. Now she felt called to ride into battle herself, just like the kings of old. Her execution of her duties as queen would bind Arendelle together once more.

After a week and a half of marching, the army crossed into Borgstrom's duchy. Elsa halted them at a wide, rolling field and had the army make camp. A few days' pause would allow her troops to rest, and if they were attacked, there was a small rise that would give her a commanding view of the battlefield. She hoped that Borgstrom would come to meet her. She didn't relish the battle, but here, where he would have no cover, it would take only moments. Her scouts, however, had seen no evidence that Borgstrom had begun to move. His forces were still camped outside his castle. It would be both good strategy and good politics for him to wait, she thought. He would be on familiar territory, and she would look like the aggressor. If he didn't move within a few days, she would march.

 

Anna sat in the nursery, on the windowsill, looking out at the city. She was ready. Maybe, she reflected, too ready. She was a week overdue, and she wanted something to do, but her only task now was to wait. The end of pregnancy was less exciting than the beginning. She had gained a little more than thirty pounds since last fall, and no matter what Kristoff said, she thought it looked unflattering. The bump she had been so proud of hung in front of her like a millstone. Her back ached, and her vigorous walk had turned into an awkward waddle. Her daughter kicked constantly. Today her targets were Mama's kidneys. Yesterday she had targeted Mama's bladder almost to the point of embarrassment.

Anna turned and examined the nursery again. There was a bassinet sitting by the wall, the same one she and Elsa had slept in, and a couch next to it where she could sit and watch the baby. A changing table was in the corner, and across from it was a dresser filled with clothes, blankets, washcloths, diapers. Anna had learned to knit, and, bad as she knew she was, she was still proud of the cap she had made for the baby; it was in the top drawer. A chest of toys completed the room. The blocks and wooden animals were the same ones she and Elsa had played with, minus the ones that they (mostly she) had chewed to bits. She could have ordered new toys, and would have if the toymaker had needed the business, but the sight of her old toys conjured a warm and diffuse comfort in her, and she hoped that her daughter would find the same joy in them that she had. The wooden letter 'E' had been especially tasty.

Glancing outside again, Anna noticed some sort of activity in the distance. There was a gathering of people outside the city. Some of them were holding banners. She squinted and thought she could make out Arendelle's colors. That would mean they were soldiers from the Royal Army. It hadn't even been two weeks. Could Elsa be back already?

Anna heaved herself upright, tottered to the nearby pull cord, and rang for a servant. "Find out what that commotion is outside," she said. She returned to the window to watch the soldiers. Elsa couldn't be back so soon unless Borgstrom had ridden to meet her and surrendered outright. So it wasn't Elsa; but who?

There was a knock from the door. "Come in," said Anna.

Kai entered. "Your Majesty, Count Telramund requests an audience."

"What! Are those his men outside?"

"It appears so, Ma'am."

"Why is he here? Did he explain himself?"

"No Ma'am, though he inquired after your safety. He seemed agitated."

"Well, just send him in then."

Anna sat on the couch to wait. Shortly there was another knock at the door. "Count Friedrich of Telramund," announced Kai.

Telramund entered. His face was unshaven and pale. "Your Highness," he said, bowing. "I heard a report that the castle was under attack. May I ask if you are safe?"

"Yes, we're fine. Nobody has attacked us."

Telramund's hands were trembling. He wiped them on his pants. "You're quite sure?"

"What's the matter? You look distressed."

"Your Highness, I can only offer my apologies. My sincerest apologies."

Telramund lunged. Anna raised her hands to shield her face. "Kristoff!" she yelled. Telramund grabbed her right arm and slammed her to the floor. "Kristoff, help!" Telramund drove his knee into Anna's chest, knocking the wind out of her. He locked his left arm around her neck and pulled her upright. His right hand pulled a knife from his belt and pressed the blade to her throat.

"Please don't move, Your Highness," Telramund said. His left arm held her neck up, and the cold knife touched her skin just above her collarbone. As she squirmed she felt Telramund push the blade against her flesh. The pain at her neck made her start. "Please keep still, Your Highness, and try to relax. I mean you no harm." Anna felt a trickle of blood run down her neck.

Kai burst through the door. "Your Highness!" he gasped.

As Kai approached, Telramund pulled Anna's neck back to display the knife. "Stay back," he said.

"What are you doing?" shouted Kai. "Release her!"

As Kai approached, Telramund tightened his arm around her throat, choking her. "I said stay back. I won't hesitate."

Kai halted. He and Telramund glared at each other. "Traitor," Kai said, "put down that knife and let her go."

"It's best for her if you stay where you are."

Short, ragged gasps came from Anna's throat. When Telramund noticed her labored breathing, he relaxed his arm slightly. She drew in a deep breath, then panted. She could see Kai's muscles tense. He began to raise his arms and step forward, but Telramund's knife was still at her throat. "Kai," she croaked, "stay back."

Kai put his arms down. "As you command, Highness."

"Thank you, Kai," Anna whispered.

For a long time they faced at each other, unmoving. Anna heard footsteps advancing down the hall. Soon two guardsmen entered. Kai said, "At last! Would you--"

The butt of a musket smashed across his face. Kai stumbled and fell to the ground. "No we won't, fat man." One of the soldiers put his bayonet in Kai's face. To Telramund, he asked, "What should we do with him?"

"Lock up him and the princess," said Telramund. "No, wait. Are they still fighting outside?"

"Yes, Sir."

Telramund dragged Anna to the window. "Let me go!" she yelled, kicking her heel towards Telramund's groin but hitting his thigh instead.

"Don't struggle!" Telramund lowered the knife to her belly. "It's not just your life you're risking."

At the touch of the knife's blade, terror seized Anna. She imagined the knife digging into her womb and hacking at her baby. "Please don't hurt my baby," she whispered.

Telramund hauled her to the window. "Attention!" called Telramund. "Attention, guards! Lay down your arms! The princess is our prisoner! Lay down your arms!"

Anna could see bodies in the castle courtyard. A man lay in one of the fountains. His blood made its water run red. She couldn't make out his face from here. He had dark brown hair and stubble, but no beard or mustache. Was that Henrik? He was just married last summer. Fallen at the door was an officer with a graying beard. That must be Gunnar. His sons would be heartbroken. Anna began to weep.

"Take them to the old dungeon," said Telramund, "and get her a bandage for her neck."

There were corpses everywhere. As the soldiers led Anna and Kai through the castle, Anna sobbed. Her loyal guards, whom she had loved so much, had been murdered. Many of them had been stabbed in the back, unaware that they were next to an enemy.

Hundreds of years ago a fort had been built to protect the fjord. As Arendelle had grown and become prosperous, the fort had expanded into the present-day castle. None of it had ever been demolished, only repaired and renovated. Now Anna and Kai were led down to that oldest part of the castle, to a dungeon that had been unused for as long as Anna knew.

Anna's cell was hard stone with no bed and a dim, barred window. The door was thick and heavy, its only opening a small slot for food. The guards forced her in with their bayonets, tossed her a filthy rag, and locked the door.

Anna lay on the floor and picked up the rag. She held it to her bleeding neck and cried.

 

Through the window, Anna could see that it was around noon. It must have been hours since she was captured, but her mind was still racing. Whenever she thought about the morning, she could feel her heart pump and her blood rush. It was odd, she thought, that she felt regret, because she had done nothing wrong. She and Elsa hadn't suspected that Telramund would betray them. Yet here she was, a prisoner. Her and Kai and, an hour or so later, Olaf and the chief housekeeper, Gerda.

Anna heard noise coming from the hall. She crawled to the door, aching from the blows Telramund had given her, and peered through the food slot. The noise was getting closer, though she saw nothing. She could hear shouting and men's voices. One of them sounded like Kristoff. Was Kristoff coming? Had he defeated Telramund and come to look for her?

Kristoff was chained hand and foot and being carried by four soldiers, one for each limb. "Take your hands off of me!" he shouted. He writhed and twisted under their grasp.

"Shut up or I'll break your face," said one of the soldiers.

"Kristoff!" called Anna. "Are you there?"

"Anna!" Kristoff called back.

"I said shut up!" said the same man, striking Kristoff across the face.

"Let him go!" called Anna.

Anna glimpsed Kristoff as the soldiers passed in front of her cell door. "Kristoff, I'm right here!"

Kristoff craned his neck, but Anna was already out of his view. He struggled against the soldiers carrying him again. "Let me see my wife! I want to see my wife!"

Anna heard a crack, and then silence. There was the sound of a door opening, chains clanking, and a door closing. The soldiers walked back down the hall. "Kristoff!" she called. "Are you okay? Kristoff, say something!"

There was no answer.

 

When Anna heard Kristoff groan, she crawled back to the door. "Kristoff, can you hear me?"

"Anna?" Kristoff groaned again. "Anna. What's going on? What happened?"

"I don't know. Telramund attacked me, and he threatened our baby, and he had me put here."

"Why'd he attack you?"

"I don't know. He said something about my safety, and he apologized. Then he hit me."

"Wait, who hit you?"

"Telramund."

"And then what did he do?"

"Kristoff," asked Anna, "are you feeling okay?" She waited, but Kristoff didn't reply. "Kristoff?"

"Who's there?"

"It's me, Anna."

"Where are we?"

"The dungeon. Kristoff, what's wrong? Are you hurt?"

"My head hurts. Real bad. And I'm dizzy, and my ears are ringing." Kristoff cried out in pain. "And my leg, my right leg. What's going on?"

Anna felt tears welling up in her eyes again. "We'll be okay, Kristoff. We'll be okay."

 

In the evening, there was a knock on her cell door. "Pardon me, Ma'am, but I've been sent to tend to your wounds."

Anna stood and tried to brush the dust off her dress. "Come in," she said. The door was briefly unlocked, and Doctor Jonsson came in. "Oh, Jonsson! It's good to see you."

"It pleases me to see you too, Your Highness. I understand your neck is injured."

"What's going on outside?"

"I don't know, Ma'am. Now, please stand still so I can examine your neck." Jonsson peered at the wound on Anna's neck, then knocked at the cell door. "I need boiled water, clean cloth, and wine," he told the soldier. Returning to Anna, he asked, "Where else are you injured, Ma'am?"

"Here," Anna gestured to where Telramund's knee had struck her chest. "And here." She indicated her left hip. "And I'm worried about my baby."

Jonsson put his hand up to signal silence, and he cupped his other hand to his ear. Then he leaned forward and whispered, "He's gone. Your Highness, this is a terrible situation."

"What happened?"

"The city has been conquered. I can't tell the difference between the loyal soldiers and the rebels. They look the same. Everyone has been told to stay indoors."

"Why are you here?"

"I was told that you were injured, not seriously, but enough that they wanted you examined. They seem to want you safe. Ma'am, is there anything I can do to assist?"

"Kristoff's in one of the other cells. His head and his leg are hurt. And Kai and Gerda are here, but I think they're okay."

"They didn't mention anyone but you. I'll do what I can." Jonsson cupped his hand to his ear again. Anna heard footsteps in the hall. "Now, Ma'am, take a deep breath and tell me whether your ribs hurt."

The cell door opened for two soldiers to deliver a saucepan filled with steaming water, a bundle of old linens, and a bottle of cheap wine. "Excellent," said Jonsson. He washed Anna's wound, first with water, then with wine. "Pretend you're a Roman gladiator. This is an ancient but effective treatment." He soaked the linen in wine, then wrapped the wound. "Your cut will be fine. Have the bandage changed every day until it heals."

Jonsson inspected her ribs and hip next. "Nothing appears broken or dislocated. You'll be sore, and you'll have bruises, but nothing more it seems. Your baby should be fine. Is there anything else?"

"No. Thank you, Jonsson."

Jonsson knocked on the cell door again and was let out.

"Where are my other patients?" Anna heard Jonsson ask.

"We weren't told you had other patients," said the soldier.

"Nonsense. I was told to treat all the prisoners. The baron and the princess were specifically mentioned. Where is the baron?"

The soldier grunted. "They never tell us anything. This way."

Anna noticed that her baby was kicking again. "Don't worry," she said to her baby. "Auntie Elsa is going to save us."

 

"Your Majesty! Your Majesty!"

Elsa looked at the ceiling of her tent. Could it be morning? It was too dark to be morning. It must still be night.

"Your Majesty! Please, this is urgent!"

Elsa slipped out of her bed. "Come in."

A castle guard entered. "Pardon the interruption, Your Majesty," said the guard, "but I bear urgent news."

"What is it?" said Elsa, yawning.

"The castle has been attacked."

"What!" Elsa exclaimed. "What do you mean?"

"I don't know much, Ma'am. We were on patrol outside the castle when it happened. When we tried to return to the castle, we were fired upon. We saw bodies in the courtyard, and the men were dressed in our uniforms but we didn't recognize them. I came as fast as possible."

"When did this happen?"

"This morning, Ma'am. I rode all day."

"The princess and the baron?"

"I don't know, Ma'am. I'm afraid I've said all I know."

"You may go, then."

Elsa sat down on her bed. Someone had attacked the castle! It made her head spin. For this to happen just as she had arrived in Borgstrom's duchy couldn't have been a coincidence. Borgstrom was here, not there, so he must have an ally, but nobody with any power had publicly supported him. His lone friend seemed to be Telramund, who had remained loyal to her.

Anna and Kristoff must have been captured, she reasoned. Anna was in no condition to flee, and Kristoff wouldn't leave her. There was no second army terrorizing the countryside, Elsa realized. Threatening Anna and Kristoff's safety would extract far greater concessions from her than a second army could.

"Anna," Elsa mumbled. Kristoff would be safe in captivity, but Anna was about to give birth. She wanted to free Anna, but her army was tied up here. This must have been the rebels' plan from the beginning, she realized. Borgstrom's army was a decoy constructed to draw her and the army away from Anna and Kristoff. His ally must have been someone trusted who could move soldiers around in Royal Army uniforms without being noticed. Someone who would be invited through the gates.

With a start, Elsa realized that it was Telramund. He had deceived them from the beginning. Everything he had said during his visit to the castle and everything in the letter he had shown them had been contrived to make him look trustworthy. Anna must have allowed Telramund in, thinking that he was an ally. Telramund had used that opportunity to capture her. That was why he had never asked for anything in return for his assistance. All he had wanted was their trust.

But, Elsa wondered, Telramund's rebellion seemed to lack reason. Until his letter last winter, he hadn't contacted them in years. Before then, he had been infatuated with Anna, and when he had realized she wasn't interested in him, he had left in a huff, his feelings crushed.

"Oh no," said Elsa. "Oh God, no, no, no!" She sprang to the door of her tent. "Guards! Bring me my horse! I'm leaving immediately!"

 

Anna closed her eyes again. The unyielding stone floor had been a terrible bed. It and her anxiety over her situation had prevented her from getting any rest last night. She still hoped for a few minutes rest, but the sun's rays were blazing through her eyelids. She scooted along the floor until she was back in darkness. There was nothing to do in the cell. She could see nothing but a wall through the slot in the door and nothing but the sky through the window. She might as well sleep all day.

Someone was walking down the hall. Anna stretched her legs, then curled up again, using her hands as a pillow. No doubt it was a soldier on patrol. 

The lock on Anna's cell door clicked, and the door squealed. She opened her eyes. Telramund was standing over her. "Anna!" he said. He offered her his hand. "May I help you up?"

"No," Anna said.

Telramund looked well-rested today. His eyes were vibrant and his pose was jaunty. "Come on now," he said. He grabbed her hands and began to pull her up. "You'll feel much better."

Anna yanked her hands back. "Stay away from me," she said.

"I understand your reluctance, but let's not dawdle. Men," he said, "help her up." Two soldiers entered the cell. They took Anna by her arms and forced her to stand. "Now, let's go."

Anna was marched through the castle. The bodies had been cleared away since yesterday, but there were still bloodstains in the carpets. The sight of them made her shudder.

Telramund took her to her and Kristoff's private chambers. "I'm sorry about leaving you in the cell all yesterday, but it was the safest thing. It's a filthy place, though, isn't it? So I've had a bath drawn for you. I'll be in the library whenever you're done."

Anna was left alone with a tub of warm water, a bar of soap, and a scrub brush. She was filthy, she admitted. There was nobody around. And it was her room, rather, her and Kristoff's room. She rang for a servant. Her pregnancy made getting in and out of a tub too awkward to be safe alone.

An unfamiliar teenage girl entered the room. "Your Highness," she said, bowing, "how may I help you?"

"You've never worked here before."

"No, Ma'am. I serve Count Telramund."

"How did you get here?"

"He had us follow behind the soldiers."

"Did you know what he was going to do? Did anybody?"

"The soldiers did, Ma'am, but he didn't let them talk to us. I, well, um, I don't like it, Ma'am. I'm sorry."

"Hmm," said Anna. "What's your name?"

"Ida, Ma'am."

"Well, Ida, for the moment you can be my handmaiden. Help me out of my dress and talk to me. I want to know what's happening."

 

The battle had lasted all yesterday, Ida said. Even after Anna had been captured, the castle guards had refused to surrender. Until the afternoon, Telramund's men had controlled the courtyard and the western half of the castle, while the guards had controlled the eastern half. Most of the guards had been killed before they realized that Telramund's men were dressed in the same uniforms, but after the initial carnage, their tenacity and knowledge of the castle layout had prolonged the battle.

Kristoff had been captured while he led a sortie. He and the guards had surprised a squad of enemy soldiers, but he had been stabbed in the leg with a bayonet. With Kristoff unable to walk, enemy reinforcements had overtaken him and his men.

Late in the day, the last group of guards had surrendered. The surviving guards were being held in the city jail. Most of the staff had been let free, but the ones who had resisted were being held with the guards. Kai and Gerda, being the most senior servants, were being held in the castle.

Telramund's son Alexander and a small staff of servants had followed the army. After the castle was secure, Telramund had them brought in. Ida had spent the evening cleaning thick, coagulated blood off of the castle walls. "It was terrifying, Ma'am. My older brother is in the army and I couldn't stop thinking about him."

"Where is he now?" asked Anna.

"The last letter we got from him said that he was going to march out with the queen any day. But we don't hear from him much. He has to get someone else in his unit to write for him because he never learned himself."

"He would have left two weeks ago with the rest of the army. By now they must be preparing to attack." The water felt good, but it was tepid now and would soon be getting cold. "I'm done. Help me out."

Ida helped Anna out of the tub and into her bathrobe. "Ma'am, would you like to begin dressing right away, or would you prefer to dry first?"

"I'll wait. Brush my hair for me."

While Ida was working on a vicious knot, Anna yelped. "My lady!" said Ida. "I'm so sorry!"

"That wasn't you," said Anna. "I got a cramp. A cramp right, well, right here," she said, putting her hands over her belly.

"Would you like me to call for the midwife, Ma'am?"

"No," said Anna. "This has happened before." She sighed. "But it won't be long now."

 

When Anna had finished dressing, she trudged to the library to meet Telramund. There was no use in trying to escape, she thought, not in her condition and with all the soldiers around. Telramund was sitting in Elsa's favorite chair with his feet propped up on an ottoman. Alexander was at the opposite end of the library, playing. When Anna entered, he laid his book aside and stood. "Anna," he said, smiling. "I hope you're feeling refreshed."

"What do you care?"

"Sit down," Telramund said.

"No."

"As you wish. I'd like to take this opportunity to apologize to you. This has been an unpleasant exercise for everyone."

"Unpleasant? You killed my people!"

"I didn't like it! Please, Anna," Telramund said. "My intentions are entirely virtuous. I'd like the chance to explain myself. May I explain myself?"

Anna was suspicious. Telramund had lied to her and Elsa before. She couldn't trust him, but maybe he would reveal something. "Fine."

"Come here, then, and sit." Telramund returned to Elsa's chair, and Anna sat facing him. He began to speak, but his voice caught, and he coughed. He laughed nervously. "I'm sorry, but I've looked forward to this moment for a long time now. I'm not sure where to begin." He breathed deeply and said, "This is about your sister. It's entirely about your sister and her, well, unusual talents."

"Her ice magic."

"Yes. Her ice magic. Magic is an evil thing. Magical powers come from pacts with demons, they come from selling your soul, they come with a terrible price."

"How can you say that? Elsa was born with her powers."

Telramund nodded. "Her curse may not be her fault. Perhaps it was your parents who dealt with the devil. I don't know. Yet what does everyone call her? The Snow Queen. They call her that because she flaunts her magic. It defines her. People identify her with sorcery, and sorcery is wicked."

"People love her."

"They endure her. In public they do their duty to her. Arendelle is a tough nation. Her people can, her people will survive. In private they loathe her. All Arendelle is boiling over with hatred for her witchery. They abhor her." Telramund leaned forward. "I will deliver Arendelle from the queen's tyranny. They will no longer have to suffer. Most of all, Anna, I am offering you your freedom. I know that your position is very difficult. You are not corrupt like she is. You are her victim. She wields strange and unnatural powers, and she uses her position as your elder sister and the queen to manipulate you, but you don't have to fear her any more. I can protect you."

"I don't fear her. You're talking nonsense."

"Look at what a hold she has over you! She's nearly killed you with her magic. Twice!"

"Those were accidents. Elsa has never wanted to hurt me."

"Think of what she could do to you. You would be powerless against her. And think of your baby. You could never protect your baby from her."

"I trust her more than I trust you."

"I at least admit my faults. The whole foundation of this plan was deceit. You see how honest I am? Borgstrom and I knew that we could never defeat the queen in open battle. But with him in the field I could march right up to the gates. With a war on and men being conscripted, nobody worries if they don't recognize a face or even a whole unit. If I say we were told to reinforce the castle, nobody even blinks. I am, after all, known to be your ally. The castle guards were never going to be fooled by that for very long, but we only needed to get inside. Luckily you chose to see me without being surrounded by guards, so I was able to capture you immediately and keep you safe." Telramund saw Anna raise a hand to the fresh bandage around her neck. "Yes, I'm sorry about that. It was a terrible necessity, but I'm not afraid of necessity."

"You're insane."

"It kept your butler at a distance until he could be subdued. The cut will heal, but in a struggle among the three of us, anything could have happened. This was the safest choice. Anna," he said, "I should be honest with you. I've been concerned for your safety for years. Ever since the gates opened and I first met you."

Anna furrowed her brow. This was getting even stranger. "I don't follow."

"I'm sorry, I can see that I haven't fully explained myself. But you've appeared so many times in my dreams that I feel a spiritual connection with you."

Anna was confused. "Er, well, you see... You know, it's almost lunch time now. Maybe we should have lunch."

"Oh, my apologies. You haven't eaten at all today, have you?" Telramund rang for a servant. "I'm so excited that I've been a poor host. But you shouldn't think of me as your host. This is your home, and I am truly your guest. You have my permission to go wherever you like in the castle, except the dungeon and the gatehouse. You are not to visit the prisoners, nor to attempt escape."

"I don't have to go back to that cell?"

"No, of course not. As long as you behave yourself, there will be no need for that." A servant entered. "Prepare lunch for Princess Anna and myself. Be quick, she hasn't eaten today."

Anna and Telramund sat in silence. Anna wondered whether Telramund was crazy. His reasoning was bizarre, yet his plan to capture her and the castle had worked flawlessly. She and Kristoff were valuable prizes.

Telramund had said that Anna appeared in his dreams. At once, Anna comprehended Telramund's motive for rebellion and was terrified. She looked around. Nobody but her, Telramund, and Alexander was in the room. She felt trapped. She had never before had to worry about a man's unwanted attentions. All of them had been too intimidated by her title, her guards, and Kristoff. Those were gone now. Telramund could do as he pleased, and his preoccupation with her was dangerous. Anna was gripped with panic. The room spun about her. She gripped the chair and tried to sit up straight but found herself bent over. She gulped air. "I'm not feeling well," she said, gasping. "I need to lie down."

"Do you need assistance?"

"I can manage." Anna tried to stand, but she couldn't feel her legs, and she collapsed back onto the chair.

"Anna!" said Telramund, springing towards her. He offered his hands. "May I help you?"

"No! I just need a moment. Call Ida for me."

"Of course."

The moment Ida entered the room, Anna felt her tension ease. Ida supported Anna as she hobbled to her room. "Thank you, Ida," said Anna, when they arrived.

"Do you need other assistance, Ma'am?"

"Yes," said Anna. "Lock the door. Lock the door and don't let anyone in."

 

Elsa's head snapped up again. She grabbed the reins and pulled herself back into balance. This time, her sleepiness had nearly made her fall off her horse. She slapped herself across her face hard and kicked the horse to a trot. She wasn't as good a horsewoman as Anna, she knew, but she had still managed to ride all night and day. By changing horses at every town and military outpost she had maintained a quick pace. The city was in view now.

Standing a little outside the city was a group of soldiers. As Elsa approached, they formed themselves into a line across the road. Traitors, she thought. She could just kill them; they would be hanged anyway. Yet she found herself reining in her horse as she reached them. "Halt," one of them called. "Nobody is being allowed in or out of the city."

"Let me through," said Elsa.

Three of the soldiers aimed their muskets. "We have orders to detain anyone who attempts to enter or leave the city."

"I don't have time for this," Elsa said. She raised her arms, and a thick circle of ice sprang from the ground around the soldiers. Two of the soldiers fired their muskets, but the lead shot became stuck a hand's length into the ice. Elsa rode around the column, peering in. She could see the refracted images of the soldiers inside. One of them beat his fist against the wall of ice, but it held. Elsa smiled. It had worked! She had practiced this but never used it on people before. They would be trapped until it thawed or someone dug them out. Elsa cantered on to the city.

 

Anna heard pounding.

"Anna!" called Telramund. "Open this door!"

Anna's eyes sprang open. After Ida had brought her lunch, she had climbed into bed and thought of Kristoff. Relaxed, she had napped; but now she was alert.

Telramund pounded on the door again. "Anna! Open the door at once!"

Telramund sounded angry, so Anna tried to make her voice sweet. "Just a moment," she sang. "What's the matter?" She looked around for a weapon. 

"This is important! Open up!"

The nightstand was too bulky. The pillow was too soft. "Please calm down," she said. "I'll be there shortly." Anna picked up a candlestick, but it wasn't heavy enough. Scanning the room, she noticed the fireplace. She hurried to it and grabbed the poker.

Telramund had stopped pounding. Anna went to the side of the door. She could hear muttering on the other side. When something rattled in the lock, Anna knew that Telramund must have one of the guards' master keys. She raised the poker over her shoulder. The lock clicked, and the door opened.

As Telramund stepped into the room, Anna swung. The poker crashed against Telramund's forehead. He howled and fell. Anna raised the poker again. Two guards rushed through the door and caught her arms. "Let me go!" she yelled, trying to wrestle out of their grasp. Two more guards came forward and pulled the poker out of her hands.

Meanwhile Telramund had straightened himself. "Don't do that again!" he roared. To the guards, he said, "Shackle her, and pick her up." The guards shackled her arms and legs, then hoisted her, one man carrying each limb.

"Hey!" Anna said. "Put me down!"

"Shut up," said Telramund. "This will be over quicker if you cooperate."

"What's going to be over?"

"Can't you feel it? Look outside!" Telramund grabbed her hair and jerked her face towards a window. "It's snowing! Your sister is here!"

 

The gates were closed. As Elsa rode her horse across the bridge, she surveyed the castle. There had been soldiers on the battlements when she had been further away, but now they were all hidden. They were surely here, though. She called out, "Open the gates!"

There was no reply and no movement but the fall of snowflakes. Elsa wondered when the snow had started. She knew it was her fault, but she was too tired and too anxious to stop it. When Anna was safe, she thought, then she would be able to stop the snowfall.

"I know you're there!" Elsa yelled. "Come on! Open up!"

Again there was silence.

"I am your queen! I command you to open the gates!"

"Ruling is not as simple as giving orders," said Telramund. On the battlements over the gatehouse, Anna edged into view. She was flanked by two soldiers gripping her arms. Heavy shackles encircled her wrists. Behind her was Telramund with his left arm around her neck and his right hand holding a knife to her throat. "But how would a tyrant like you know that?"

"Get away from her," growled Elsa.

"I think not," said Telramund.

"If you let her go, I'll kill you quickly."

"I'm not afraid of you! None of us are afraid of you anymore! With a flick of my knife I can take her away from you. She'll be free, and I'll have saved her."

"You should be afraid of me."

"Elsa," said Anna. Her voice quivered. "Don't threaten him. He'll do it."

"I won't let him hurt you, Anna." Elsa dismounted. Walking backwards and fixing her eyes on Telramund, she led her horse away from the gates, then gave it a quick pat to make it trot away. She reached towards the ground and spread her fingers. Ice splashed from her hands and covered the bridge. As she raised her arms, waves of ice flowed from her fingers, making a flight of stairs from Elsa's feet to where Telramund stood on the battlements.

Telramund grit his teeth. "Guards!" he barked. "Present!" A platoon of guards appeared from behind the battlements. They raised their muskets to their shoulders and aimed at Elsa.

"No!" called Anna. "I'll do anything, just don't shoot her!"

"Hear that?" called Telramund. "Your sister wants you to surrender."

"Anna, I won't leave you here with him."

Anna shook her head. "I'll manage, whatever happens. Don't worry about me."

"You're the only one I'm worried about."

"Just go. You can't risk them hurting you."

"She won't go," said Telramund. "She knows she's losing you to me. She's dominated you for so many years that she can't bear to let me have you."

Elsa said, "Anna, will you forgive me?"

Anna nodded. "Just make sure my baby doesn't get hurt. Take care of her, okay?"

"I will. I love you, Anna."

"I love you too, Elsa."

"You can still surrender," said Telramund. "Surrender so that your niece will have a mother."

Elsa felt her legs tremble. The wind picked up, blowing flurries of snow. Elsa knew she could still surrender, but as she gazed up the steps, the image of her father sprang into her mind. The thought of her father calmed her. She knew that Papa would never have surrendered.

"I am the queen," Elsa said. "I was crowned in front of all Arendelle and in the sight of God. You yourself did homage to me. I will be queen until my death. No earthly power can dethrone me. Submit now or I will destroy you."

Telramund laughed. "I am God's instrument in your destruction, then. Guards! Fire!"

As Telramund called out his order, Elsa drew a thick wall of ice from the ground around her. Dozens of musket balls bored through the ice, but none made it through. Elsa spread her hands. The wall of ice crumbled into dust, and the useless lead shot clattered to the ground.

"Fix bayonets!" called Telramund.

Elsa leaped up the steps two at a time. At the top of the steps, Telramund and Anna had moved back. A row of soldiers had moved into the gap and stood pointing bayonets at Elsa. Elsa covered the gatehouse roof in a sheet of ice and blasted the soldiers with snow, knocking them down and pushing them to the sides. As Anna and Telramund slipped, Anna called, "My baby!" Telramund landed on his back, and his knife slipped from his grasp. Anna landed on top of him.

On her left and right, Elsa raised walls of ice to just above the heads of the soldiers, trapping them on the far side. She, Telramund, and Anna were now sealed in their own private battle. As Telramund reached for his knife, Elsa hit it with ice, knocking it away. Telramund grabbed Anna's arm and crawled towards the far end of the battlement. "Stay back," he said. He dragged Anna to the edge. "Stay back," he repeated, "or I'll throw her."

"Let her go," said Elsa.

"I'll kill her first. I'll save her from you."

"Let me go," said Anna. "I don't need you to save me."

"She has corrupted your mind. Tell her to surrender and I'll help you recover."

"You've lost," said Anna.

"Anna!" Telramund's face contorted in agony. "Please trust me this once. Please."

"Let me go."

"I know I've been very, very cruel to you, but you must understand that it was to help you. To help all of us. To free us from that witch!" Telramund's eyes shot hatred towards Elsa. "I could have let her be. I could have stayed on my own. I wanted to stay on my own! But I had to, I had to do it, I had to risk my son." He faced Anna, raised his hand, and stroked her cheek. As she shrank back in disgust, Telramund said, "I know. I'm sorry. I love you, and I've loved you for years. I kept imagining you would come to me some day, but when I learned you were pregnant I knew that it would not be. Either I had to save you by force or you were not the angel I thought you were. Please, Anna, tell me you're an angel."

"Friedrich--may I call you Friedrich? Let me go."

Telramund opened his mouth, but no words came out. His grip slackened, and he gazed, quiet and still, at Anna.

From the corner of her eye, Anna saw a soldier clamber to the top of the wall of ice that enclosed them. The soldier scanned the scene, fixed upon Elsa, and leaped. "Elsa, look out!" yelled Anna.

Before Elsa could turn, the soldier landed on her, and the two of them fell to the ground. The soldier swung the butt of his musket, striking Elsa across the jaw.

"Elsa!" screamed Anna. She tried to dive forward, but Telramund held her back.

"Don't move," Telramund said. "Look away."

Elsa put her hand in the soldier's face and blasted ice. The soldier cried out and fell back. Ice crystals grew out of his mouth and eyes, and his flesh turned pale. As he screamed, the crystals branched out across his skin, turning his flesh rigid and translucent. Elsa gasped in horror as the man turned to solid ice.

More soldiers were scaling the walls of ice now. "Look out, Elsa!" yelled Anna.

The dreadful, icy corpse transfixed Elsa, as if she could hear the man's frozen blood crying out. As she gaped, soldiers jumped down from the walls. One of them took his bayonet and stabbed her right side. Elsa screamed. A crowd of soldiers tackled her, stabbing her with their bayonets, and she collapsed.


	3. Chapter 3

Elsa couldn't tell whether or not she was awake. She was surrounded by utter blackness. She stretched her eyes wide open but the blackness remained. Was she blind? She blinked hard twice. Maybe she was dead.

There was something smooth and solid against Elsa's cheek. She lifted her head, but pain coursed through her body, and she let her head fall. Her legs were against the same surface as her head, she realized. She was lying down. She stretched her legs but winced. She tested them, moving them outward and inward, flexing and pointing. They both ached, and there were sharp pains in her thighs and calves. She could feel bandages around them.

Elsa's arms wouldn't move. She tried to lift her right arm, then her left arm, but both were held down by tremendous weights. Cuffs around her wrists prevented her from pulling her arms out from under the weight. Tensing her arm muscles hurt as if her arms, too, had been injured. Flexing her wrists in every direction, she discovered that her hands were enclosed in solid metal gloves similar to the ones Hans had put on her. These gloves, however, covered her whole forearm and were so heavy that she couldn't lift them.

Elsa tried again to sit up, but pain pierced her side, forcing her back to the floor. She couldn't reach up to her side to probe the wound, but by wriggling her torso against her arm, she discerned that there were bandages wrapped around her dress. They felt damp, as if she was still bleeding.

Elsa didn't know how long had passed since the battle at the gatehouse. She had been so tired that she must have slept for a long time. Telramund had had ample time to decide what to do next. If he had intended to kill her outright, he would have done so already, so he must have another plan. Perhaps he intended to use her captivity to force the Royal Army to surrender. Or maybe it was related to his weird attachment to Anna. None of the possibilities were good. Elsa needed to escape.

Elsa blasted ice into her gloves. When they filled, she pushed harder. Crushed ice spilled onto her arms, but the gloves didn't break. She caught her breath and tried again, but to no avail. The gloves neither flexed nor groaned nor even moved. They seemed too heavy and thick for her to break apart.

The silence and the darkness were oppressive. "Is anyone there?" she called. Her words rang briefly, but without echoing, as if the room were small and bare. There was no response. "Anyone?"

It was not the same as the darkness of nighttime. On sleepless nights Elsa had often watched the city from her bedroom. The sky was filled with thousands, even millions, of stars twinkling their light on Arendelle. The moon glowed on the city, lighting the streets and shining on the ships as they swayed in the harbor. Candles gleamed in the houses, and the city basked in the quiet, joyous darkness. But the darkness in which Elsa now lay was a shapeless void. It was colorless and sterile, lacking people and lacking emotion. Its absence of definition was overwhelming Elsa's senses. It had swallowed her, trapping her, depriving her of feeling, absorbing and dissolving her into its vacant nothingness.

She had failed her kingdom, Elsa thought, and failed Anna. She had failed to uphold her sworn oath to defend Arendelle. She had intended not to kill anyone, and she had failed at that, too. As she lay in the darkness, misery gnawed at her bones. If she died, she thought, at least she would be free from her despair.

 

"Explain this to me again," said Anna. "We're in my castle. That's my door you're standing in front of. On the other side of my door is my ice well, where we're supposed to keep ice for the summer but where you're holding my sister instead. You serve in the Royal Army, and since my sister's not available, you're under my command. But somehow you know better. Somehow you think you have authority. Somehow you think you can disobey my order to let me through my door to see my sister!"

"Orders, Ma'am," said the soldier. "Nobody is to talk to the prisoner."

"Let me in!"

"Sorry, Ma'am."

Anna growled and clenched her fists, then spun on her heel and left. It was the day after the battle. All she knew about Elsa's situation was where Elsa was being held, and Anna knew that only because she had coaxed Ida into telling her.

Anna stormed to the library. Telramund had pulled an old and yellowed volume from the shelf and was studying it. He had a puffy red welt on his forehead where Anna had hit him with the poker yesterday. "Good morning, Anna," he said.

"Why won't you let me see Elsa? Why won't you let me see Kristoff? Or Olaf or Kai or Gerda?"

"Sit down."

Anna slammed the book shut. "Tell your men to let me see them!"

Telramund lay the book aside and stood. "Sit down, please." Anna didn't move. Telramund grabbed her arms. She jerked them back, but he held fast. "I said sit," he said, forcing her into a chair.

"I hate you!"

"Give it time. These past few days have been trying for all of us. The rest of the time, I can be, I assure you, quite charming." Telramund looked over to the corner of the library, where Alexander was playing. "Alexander!" he called. He motioned for Alexander to join them. Alexander ran up to Telramund, raised his arms, and Telramund lifted him into his lap. "Alexander, say hello to Princess Anna."

"Hi," mumbled Alexander.

"Say, 'Hello, Princess Anna.'"

"Hello, Princess Anna," Alexander said.

"Why are you doing this?" asked Anna. "Why make him a part of it?"

"I can't leave him out of it. Alexander, you should bow before a princess. Can you bow for her?" Alexander slid off Telramund's lap and bowed. "Well done," said Telramund, lifting Alexander back into his lap. "Anna, most of what I do is for him."

"Yesterday you said you did it all for me."

"Yes, I did. The two are intertwined. You see, his situation is difficult. He needs a mother."

"Wait. Don't even say any more. I'm already married."

"For now. But that could change."

"Don't you dare execute my husband!"

"If he were convicted of a crime, there would be nothing I could do. If the penalty were death," he shrugged, "he would have to be executed."

"You know that's a fraud."

"This volume I was looking at here says otherwise."

Anna looked at the book for the first time. On its spine it read, "Laws of the Kingdom of Arendelle, Volume XXVI."

Telramund explained, "It seems that there's a statute prohibiting witchcraft. It's, oh, I'd say six hundred years old, give or take a hundred. The penalty for witchcraft or for assisting witchcraft is death. Your sister is well known to practice witchcraft, and I'm sure that several members of this household have assisted her. Not you, I hasten to add. You are innocent. But for those that have, we must see justice done."

Anna shook with rage. "You're sick. I'll never marry a murderer like you. As for Alexander, all he does is remind me of you, and I hate you." She stood. "Leave me out of your disgusting fantasies."

As Anna stomped away, Telramund called, "The queen's trial will be first. It starts the day after tomorrow." Anna pretended not to hear him.

 

"Elsa. Elsa."

Elsa lifted her head. Papa stood by her feet. "Papa?" she asked.

"That's right. I'm here." Papa stood out from the darkness, lit despite the lack of light.

"Am I dreaming?"

Papa got down on one knee next to her and cradled her head in his arms. "I'm here, Elsa." He kissed her cheek, and she felt his mustache scratch her.

"Oh Papa, I missed you. They made me queen, and I didn't know what to do, and I was no good at it."

"Yes, you're a failure."

"Papa, come back to us. Be king again."

Papa shook his head. "There's no more kingdom. You let it be destroyed."

"Everyone loves you. I love you."

"That doesn't matter anymore."

"They'll listen to you. They'll lay down their arms."

"You've already ruined the kingdom. It's too late."

"It's my fault, isn't it?"

"Yes, it is. That's why you're here. You deserve this."

"Papa," said Elsa, sniffling, "you don't have to say that. I know."

"You deserve worse than this," said Papa. "Our family has ruled Arendelle for hundreds of years. You couldn't even rule it for three. You should be ashamed."

Elsa's voice cracked. "I am, Papa."

"You're not my daughter," Papa said, "because my daughter would be a better queen."

"Please, Papa, I tried."

"Nobody cares that you tried. You're an impostor, so you failed. It would have been better for you not to try."

"I had to try. Didn't you want me to try?"

"If you had run away, none of this would have happened."

"Please don't say that Papa. Please."

"You should have stayed away and let Anna be queen."

"No!" shouted Elsa, but Papa had already vanished.

 

Elsa heard someone humming behind her. She craned her neck. Mama was sitting in a chair with her back to Elsa. "Mama!" she called. Mama didn't respond. She sat in the chair, still humming. "Mama, is that you?" Elsa recognized the melody. It was a lullaby Mama had sung to her and Anna. "Mama! Help!"

Mama stood and walked towards Elsa. Elsa could see that Mama was carrying a bundle in her arms. She was still humming.

"Mama, can you hear me?"

Mama stopped next to Elsa but seemed not to see her. She looked at the bundle in her arms. "Good night, Elsa," she said. "You're such a sweet little girl."

"Mama, I'm right here. Can't you see me?"

Mama rocked the baby. "Some day you're going to grow up to be a mama of your own, won't you? The boys will love you. They'll make fools of themselves trying to get a dance with you." Mama giggled. "You're going to have more suitors than we can fit in the castle."

"Mama, it's not like that. It can't be like that."

"Don't think that you can reject them all. Mama wouldn't like that. Mama wants you to get married."

"I don't want to get married," said Elsa. "I'm happy with Anna and Kristoff and Olaf."

"Mama wants you to get married because if you don't get married you're a failure. Girls who can't find anyone to love them are failures."

"People do love me! Lots of people love me. I don't need to get married to prove that."

Mama's grip on the baby tensed. "Girls who don't have children are failures. It's your duty to have children. Every month you're not pregnant is a failure."

"I'm not going to have children! I have a kingdom to run."

The baby was fussing. "Girls who don't want children are monsters. If you're a monster you're worse than a failure."

Elsa shook her head. "Mama, stop," she whispered. "Please understand."

"Nobody loves monsters, because monsters don't deserve love. Monsters aren't even human. Are you a monster, Elsa?"

"No! Mama, can't you understand? I don't dare have children."

The baby cried, but Mama shushed it and began to walk away. "Of course you're not a monster. You're going to get married and have lots of children, I just know it."

"I can't do it, Mama," said Elsa to the darkness. "They could turn out like me."

 

Later that morning, Anna was on her bed, trying to find a comfortable position to nap. The past few days had left her tired, but the baby was so large and awkward that she always had trouble getting to sleep.

Anna felt a sudden and powerful cramp. She cried out. It was another reminder that the baby was overdue. She stroked her bump. "You're ready, aren't you? I wish your father was here. He'd be so excited."

Anna rearranged her pillows. She was still furious with Telramund. What, she wondered, would he do to Kristoff? Or worse, to her baby? She didn't know how to fight him. As long as his soldiers occupied the castle she was powerless.

Just as Anna thought she was beginning to sleep, another cramp shot through her belly. "Could it be happening?" she said aloud. She closed her eyes again. When she felt a third cramp, she got out of bed and rang for Ida. She paced until Ida arrived. "I think I'm in labor," she said. "Call the midwife."

 

After Mama disappeared, Elsa lay in the darkness and wept. She didn't know how long she had been in the darkness, nor did she know how long Mama and Papa had been there. Mama and Papa had seemed real, but they must have been visions, because it had been dark except for them, and besides, they were both dead.

Elsa might have slept before the visions, or between them, or just now. Maybe all three, she wondered. There was no way of telling how much time had passed, except that she was both hungry and thirsty, and she had had no food or water since being imprisoned here.

Nothing happened in prison. As painful as it had been to have visions of her father and mother, it had relieved her boredom. She blew ice into her gloves again. It was vain, but it gave her something to do.

 

"Ma'am, he still can't hear you," said the first soldier.

"Kristoff!" called Anna again. "It's happening!"

There was no response from behind the dungeon door. The second soldier said, "Please, Ma'am, it's no use."

"I'm having the baby!" Anna yelled. "Kristoff!"

The second soldier sighed. "Ma'am, if you leave I'll tell him."

"You're not supposed to do that," said the first soldier.

Anna said, "I want to tell him myself. Ah!" Another contraction struck her. She leaned against the wall as a wave of tension passed through her belly.

The first soldier waited until Anna had recovered. "Ma'am, you should be conserving your strength."

"The midwife said that I could do whatever I wanted until the contractions got stronger."

"They already look pretty strong to me."

"Ma'am," said the second soldier, "I swear I'll tell him. Please just go."

"Kristoff! I'm in labor!"

"Ma'am, the only way he'll find out is if I tell him."

"I'm going to wait here while you do, then."

"Will you leave afterwards?"

"Fine."

The soldiers exchanged glances. The first one shrugged, and the second unlocked the door and entered. Anna waited. After a minute or so, the second soldier returned.

"Well?" asked Anna.

"He knows."

"What did he say?"

"He said he wished he could be with you."

"Thanks," Anna said, feeling warm inside. "I love you Kristoff!"

Anna left the prison and went to the ice well. It must be a terrifying place to be imprisoned, she thought, and the irony of trapping Elsa in ice couldn't have escaped Telramund.

Two soldiers stood guard in front of the door to the ice well. "Your Highness, we can't let you in," said the first one.

"I know," said Anna. "I'm just going to call out to her. Elsa! Elsa, can you hear me?"

"She can't hear you," said the first soldier. 

"Elsa! I'm in labor! Elsa!"

"The well is deep, and she's at the bottom."

Anna heard something soft from behind the door. "What's that?" she asked. The soldiers didn't respond. "Is it her?"

"Well, you see," began the second soldier, but he cut himself off.

"I see what? Is it her or isn't it?"

"Well, she's the only one in there."

"You can hear her. What's she been saying?"

"Nothing."

"Really?"

"Well, yeah."

"Come on."

"I guess, well, I guess I couldn't really make it out."

Anna folded her arms and frowned. "What are you holding back?"

"Pardon me, Ma'am," broke in the first soldier, "but it would be best for you to leave."

"Why? What's happening to my sister?"

"Nothing. Nobody's in there but her."

Anna heard the noise again, loud enough now to make out. It was a hoarse scream. Elsa paused for breath, then resumed screaming, a raw throaty howl that chilled Anna in her bones. Anna charged the door. "Elsa! Elsa! I'm here! I'm going to get you out of there!"

The soldiers held Anna back. "We can't let you in there," said the first soldier.

The screams faded. "Elsa!" sobbed Anna. "What are they doing to you, Elsa?"

"Ma'am, she's alone," said the first soldier.

"Elsa!" Anna struggled against the soldiers' grip. "I'm going to save you! Ah!" A contraction washed over her, doubling her over with pain. The soldiers caught her as she fell to the ground.

 

Elsa saw Anna standing just a few feet away. Telramund had his arm around Anna's neck and his knife to her throat. "Anna!" called Elsa. "I'm coming to save you!"

Elsa felt herself get up. She felt light, as if she weren't wearing her heavy restraining gloves. Behind Anna, Telramund smirked.

Elsa dove forward but was too slow. Telramund's knife slashed Anna's throat, and blood spurt out. Anna screamed, and Elsa shouted, "No!" As the blood ran out of her neck, Anna turned pale and crumpled to the ground. Telramund laughed. Elsa cradled Anna in her arms. "Anna! Anna, don't die." Elsa put her hand over the cut to stop the bleeding. "Stay awake, Anna. Stay here with me." Elsa turned her head to look up at Telramund. He grinned, took his knife in both hands, and plunged it into Elsa's heart. She screamed.

When Elsa reopened her eyes, Anna was standing nearby again, and Telramund's knife was at her throat like before. "I have to save you, Anna," said Elsa. She rose, again not feeling the weight of the gloves. As she rushed towards Anna, Telramund threw Anna to the ground and held out his knife. Before Elsa could turn, she careened into the knife blade. As the knife plunged into her heart, she screamed again.

A third time, Elsa opened her eyes. Anna and Telramund were in the same positions as before. Elsa stood up. "I'm going to save you this time," she said. "Hold still." Before Elsa moved, Telramund cut Anna's throat. Anna collapsed, and Telramund advanced on Elsa. Elsa, seized by panic, couldn't move. Telramund raised the knife to Elsa's throat and severed her head.

 

Outside, Anna sat on the floor. "How long has she been like this?" she asked.

"Since our shift started this morning," said the second soldier.

"Is she getting worse?"

"Yeah."

"Do you know what's happening?"

"No. Sometimes it's crying, other times it's screaming. But she's alone, I swear it."

"Can't you do anything?"

The first soldier shook his head. "Orders, Ma'am."

"Elsa!" Anna called to the door. "Can you hear me? Elsa!" There was no response. 

"We only hear her faintly."

"This is unconscionable," said Anna. She got up from the floor and left to find Telramund.

 

Anna charged into Elsa's study. Telramund was seated behind Elsa's desk. The fireplace was lit despite the room not being cold. "This is barbaric!" she yelled, slamming her fists on the desk.

"Anna, please calm down. What's the matter?"

"Let Elsa out! She can't take it any more." A contraction gripped her. "Ah!"

Telramund waited until the contraction passed. "Sit down, Anna."

Anna grimaced, but sat down. "You have to let her out!"

"I don't have to do anything," Telramund said. "She's a prisoner awaiting trial."

"What has she done to deserve this?"

"Your sister is known to be extraordinarily dangerous. Restraining her requires unusual precautions."

"It doesn't require driving her mad! Keeping her alone and in the dark is inhuman!"

"Is that what this is about? You would like her transferred to a more conventional cell? But that's risky. She's escaped those before. Keeping her under control requires, as I said, unusual precautions."

"You want to break her. That's your plan, isn't it? Destroy her mind and you've conquered Arendelle."

"I'm only acting in the best interests of the kingdom. In the best interests of all of us. Anna," he said, holding out his hands, "you and I can save the kingdom together. We can rescue Arendelle."

"I won't have anything to do with anyone who hurts my sister."

"It's for our benefit. Even for her benefit. It's better that she should go on trial than continue doing evil."

"My sister isn't evil!"

"No, of course not. Pardon me, I didn't mean that at all. It's her magic that's evil. Your parents told her to suppress her ice magic. They were right. Everyone remembers the sudden winter that came when she embraced magic for the first time. It wreaked havoc on crops, on shipping, on everything. Despite clear warnings and despite the destruction it causes, she won't give up magic. The temptation of supernatural power is too strong for her. It's better for her to face her failings now than to continue in them."

"She doesn't care about power."

"Then how do you explain her use of magic?"

"She was born with it!"

"She could choose not to use it. She uses it because she's power-hungry. The logic is irrefutable."

"Why are you afraid of her? What did she ever do to you?"

"She kept you away from me." Telramund caressed Anna's hands, but she jerked them back. "Give me a chance, Anna. Please."

"I am never giving you a chance," said Anna, getting up from the chair. "I've never hated anyone so much in my life."

Telramund rang for a servant. "I love you," he said. "If you don't love me then you misunderstand me. You should have some time to think about how much I love you." A servant entered. "The princess is to be confined to her room until further notice. Call for a guard and have her escorted there."

 

Anna paced, over and over. Being confined to her room was boring, especially during labor. The midwife, Margrete, had advised Anna to do something to take her mind off of the contractions, but as morning turned into afternoon, they had become too strong and frequent for her to concentrate.

"How long until you check me again?" asked Anna.

"Another ten minutes," said Margrete.

"Just do it now. I can't take it any longer."

Anna lay down on the bed and spread her legs. Margrete examined her. Ida stood at a distance. "About two finger widths."

"How big does it have to get?"

"Big enough for the baby to fit. You've a long way to go."

"God, when is she going to hurry up?"

"Patience. It could be hours."

"It's already been hours!"

"What can I say? I once tended a woman who was in labor for three days."

"I can't take three days of this." Anna got up again and resumed pacing. "I need to get out of here. Ah!" A contraction ripped through her body. Her back muscles squeezed until they burned, and she felt as if her insides were twisting themselves apart. Ida supported her until the contraction passed. "That was bad," said Anna.

"You may be at the point where walking makes it feel worse. It's a little early for that, but it could be."

"I can't just lie in bed."

"A lot of women like to squat or to get on their hands and knees, but suit yourself."

Minutes later, Anna again felt her back muscles burning and her insides twisting. After the contraction passed, she found panting for air. "Is it going to keep being this bad?" she asked.

"No. Worse."

 

Elsa could hear Anna but couldn't see her. She looked around. Anna wasn't to her left, nor to her right, nor behind her. Elsa's head felt cloudy. Was it possible to hear someone you couldn't see? She wasn't sure.

Telramund appeared at her feet. He was in an army dress uniform. "Anna's going to marry me today," he gloated. "She's going to marry me and leave you forever."

"She'd never do that," said Elsa.

"Yes I would," said Anna. She was in a bridal gown. She put her hand in Telramund's. "I'm going to leave you forever."

"Please don't," said Elsa. "I love you."

"I thought I loved you," said Anna, "but I was wrong."

"What about Kristoff?"

"He wants to stay here in the castle. I'm leaving him so that I don't have to be around you anymore."

"But why not? What did I do wrong?"

"You never want to do anything fun. You never want to hold parties, or go horseback riding, or go sailing, or anything."

"I'll do all of those things if you stay. Please don't go!"

"It's too late. I don't care about you anymore." Anna kissed Telramund, and together they faded into darkness.

"Wait!" Elsa called. "Wait!"

 

Anna moaned as the contraction racked her body. Despite her best efforts, she was sitting in a chair, as the pain was usually too much to bear while standing.

"My legs are restless," Anna complained. "I'm going to stand up again."

Ida prepared herself to catch Anna. Anna's last attempt to stand had lasted less than a minute.

Anna took a few steps and breathed a sigh of relief. "Much better," she said. "Now if only the baby would hurry up." Anna, supported on one arm by Ida, circled the room. As she approached the chair, another contraction struck her. Ida and Margrete helped Anna to sit down again.

"Let me look at you," said Margrete. Anna spread her legs. "No change."

"How long has it been since you last saw it widen?"

"Well, it's early evening now, and you were like this late morning. So about eight hours."

Anna groaned. "This is so much harder than I thought it would be."

 

An enormous face as tall as a man hung in front of Elsa. It was the face of the soldier she had frozen to death. As she gaped at it, his eyes froze, turning to giant crystals that outgrew his eye sockets. From his mouth, a blizzard of snow poured onto Elsa. As she held up her hands to shield her face, the snow became a fountain of thick, gushing blood. She gasped for air but choked under the flow. She tried to shut her mouth to avoid drowning, but her jaw was locked open, and the blood filled her lungs. The blood froze inside her, forming jagged shards in her chest that tore through her flesh. She looked down and saw icicles jutting out through her ribs.

The soldier's two young daughters were standing over her. "Papa, Papa!" said the younger one. "What happened?"

"She killed me," said the soldier. "The snow queen killed me with her ice magic."

The older one asked, "Why would she kill you?"

"Her heart is made of ice. She doesn't care that she killed me."

"I'll tear out her heart of ice, then, and if she can't find a real heart, she deserves to die."

"Don't do it!" yelled the solider. But the older daughter grabbed the icicles that jabbed from Elsa's chest. The daughter put her foot against Elsa's stomach and pulled. Elsa's ribs cracked and split open, spattering frozen gore. Elsa screamed.

Elsa's frozen blue heart beat in the girl's hands. As the girl squeezed the heart, Elsa felt a crushing weight on her chest. The heart burst, showering ice all around. Elsa felt her blood stop, and her body went limp.

The girl's hands were turning blue. "What's happening?" she asked.

"Because you killed her," said her father, "your heart is turning to ice."

Icy tracks grew up the girl's arms. "I'm scared! It's getting stronger!" As the ice reached her chest, she convulsed. When she reopened her eyes, they were blank.

"Do you want to build a snowman?" asked the younger daughter.

"I don't love you anymore," said the older daughter. She reached her hand up and shot ice into her sister's heart. The younger daughter's hair turned white, and her flesh grew a layer of frost. As she reached out her hand towards her older sister, she froze, turning into a solid blue statue of ice.

 

Around midnight, Margrete took Ida aside. "She needs food. Go get something for her."

"But she ate a normal dinner," said Ida.

Margrete lowered her voice. "It's not going well," she said. From behind them, Anna gasped and moaned. "She's not progressing. The contractions are getting stronger, but she's no more dilated than she was this morning. And the baby's big because she's overdue. She'll be in hard labor all night at least. She needs to eat or else she'll get too weak to continue."

Ida took a candle. The castle cooking staff, like all the other servants, had been dismissed, so she hastened to the guard barracks. She found the army cook and woke him. "Princess Anna needs something to eat," she said.

"It's too late for that," grumbled the cook. "She can eat in the morning."

"She's having a hard labor and needs to keep her strength up. You have to help her!"

"Go away," said the cook, rolling over so that his back was to Ida.

"Fine then," said Ida. She headed to the kitchen herself and looked around for something to eat. There was half a loaf of bread in the corner, and there was some leftover stew. It might do, she thought. She tucked the bread under her arm and grabbed the stew pot.

When Ida entered, Anna was sitting on her chair again, caught in the midst of a contraction. "Ma'am?" asked Ida. "Would you like some bread?"

Anna didn't reply until the contraction passed. Then she jammed the bread into her mouth and chewed. It took Anna a quarter of an hour, pausing during contractions so that she didn't choke, to finish the loaf.

When Anna was finished, Ida asked, "Ma'am, would you like more?"

Anna shook her head. "I want Elsa."


	4. Chapter 4

Elsa sat up with a start. She was in her bed, wearing her shift. She looked at her arms. There were no gloves on them. She prodded herself all around. She was uninjured.

"How are you feeling?"

Elsa gasped. A strange man leaned against the wall near her bed. She pulled the sheets close to her chest. "What's going on?" she asked.

"I got you out of there. You should be grateful."

"Who are you?"

"Let's not dwell on that. Go ahead and get dressed. I'll wait."

The man left. Elsa looked around the room. She patted her mattress and her pillow, fingered her satin sheets, and tapped the carved headboard. Climbing out of the bed, she inspected the room again. Even thought the curtains were fully drawn, the light shining through them made the room well-lit. It was her bedroom.

Elsa got dressed. She didn't have a handmaiden to help her with her corset, but she when she tried to cinch it, it came together almost on its own. The moment she put up her hair and finished dressing, the man reentered carrying a tray of food. "You're hungry," he said. "You should eat."

Elsa studied the man. He had black hair with sideburns and a goatee. He was dressed in a black frock coat, black vest, and black trousers. Even his shirt and cravat were black. "Pardon me," asked Elsa, "but are you in mourning?"

The man set the tray of food down on a table. "Oh, this?" he asked, looking at his clothes. "No, this is ordinary for me. Think nothing of it. Come," he said, pulling out a chair for her, "sit and eat."

The tray had breads, a selection of jams and jellies, cheeses, eggs, smoked salmon, pickled herring, salami, and sausages. Elsa sniffed, and the aromas made her salivate. She threw together an open-faced sandwich.

The man sat down next to her. "Don't hold back. It's all yours, of course."

Elsa hadn't had a proper meal since before her ride to save Anna, and she found herself ravenous. Her first sandwich was gone almost as soon as it was made. She grabbed some pickled herring and crammed it in her mouth, then made herself a second sandwich. The speed with which she was eating made her feel piggish, but she was so hungry that she felt justified.

Elsa didn't know who the man was. The clothing appeared to be of excellent quality, so he must be rich, but he wasn't from the Arendellean nobility. The black color was odd, but perhaps it was fashionable in his country. He sported a strong brow, broad shoulders, and thick arms and legs. He was rather handsome, she thought.

"Where are you from?" Elsa asked, downing more of the delicious pickled herring.

"I travel a lot. You could say I'm everywhere." The man crossed his legs. "I'd much rather talk about you. Locking you in prison was unjust."

"What happened? How did I get out?" asked Elsa.

"I arranged for it. Don't worry, everything is fine for the moment. We can discuss details later. Right now, I wanted you to know how angry I am at what happened to you."

"Angry?"

"You must remember being locked up. That's what makes me angry. It was inappropriate to do that to someone of your rank. Doesn't it make you angry?"

"I guess it does," Elsa said with her mouth full.

"Anger is a healthy reaction," the man said, nodding. "You're a queen. You're entitled to some pride, and they ought to respect it. But instead!" He shuddered. "Telramund must have meant to humiliate you."

"He had already captured me, so I don't know why he'd bother with that."

"You seem resigned. You don't have to be. You should give him what he deserves."

"What do you mean?" Elsa began making a third sandwich.

"You should embrace your anger," the man said. "You're angry because they mistreated you. That anger is righteous. Let them feel your anger."

"Let who feel my anger?"

"All of them! Telramund most of all. How do you like that thought?"

"I don't. I've never embraced anger before," Elsa said.

"What about that time the Duke of Weselton tried to assassinate you? Weren't you angry then?"

"Well, yes."

"You nearly killed his men out of anger, didn't you?"

"I guess so."

"They earned it! And now, don't you want to pour out your anger on Telramund? Can you see yourself killing Telramund?"

The visage of the dead soldier appeared in Elsa's mind. "I don't want to kill anyone," she said.

"Some people deserve killing. That soldier you killed was a traitor. He would have been executed for treason anyway. Telramund will be executed, too, and you should be the one to carry out the sentence. He deserves it for what he did. Vengeance is true justice."

"The law is justice. Vengeance isn't."

"You can do to Telramund what he would have done to you. It's perfect retribution."

The man went to the door and opened it. On the other side Telramund knelt, bound and gagged, with a dead, glassy look in his eyes. The man picked up Telramund and heaved him into the room. Telramund landed at Elsa's feet.

"Here's your chance," said the man. "He knows what he's done to you. He knows the position he's in. He knows he doesn't deserve mercy. He expects punishment. He wants you to kill him." The man took Elsa's hands and placed them on Telramund's face. "Do it," he hissed. "Give him what he needs."

Elsa cradled Telramund's rough face, feeling its creases and stubble. She closed his eyelids and planted her palms on his cheeks and her fingertips against his temples.

Elsa drew back her hands and let Telramund's head fall. "He has a son," she said.

"You know what he did to you," said the man. "You were there. You don't need witnesses. And you're the queen, so your word is law. Whatever you do is justice."

Elsa shook her head. "I don't like killing."

"He's a traitor. He needs killing."

"If whatever I do is justice, then my mercy is justice, too. I can't kill him."

The man seethed for a moment before composing himself. "Fine then." Picking Telramund up with one hand, the man threw him out and slammed the door. He returned to the chair by Elsa. "It's your decision, of course. Your restraint is admirable."

"Really?" asked Elsa. "I don't think I would put it that way." The man was making her uncomfortable. To cover her anxiety she began eating a hard boiled egg.

"Of course it is. You showed virtue and wisdom. Those qualities deserve praise. They make you an admirable woman."

"Well, you're not subtle. What's next, an ode to my sapphire eyes and flaxen hair?"

"I know what you want. I can give it to you."

"Oh really?" Elsa nibbled on a piece of smoked salmon.

"You want to have children."

Elsa choked on her salmon, then laughed. "I see you haven't been in Arendelle long! Everyone knows I'm not getting married."

"But you want children."

"Of course not."

"You say that because you're afraid of what they might be. What they might be able to do."

"I say that because I don't want them."

"You don't want them to be magical. But if you knew they wouldn't be. If you knew."

Elsa shrugged. "It's not something one can know. My parents didn't know." She bit into a sausage.

"I can make it happen. I can give you as many children as your heart desires. They will be beautiful, strong, healthy, and free of magic."

"Impossible," said Elsa.

"We can get started right now," the man said. He took her hand and kissed it. "Trust me. Believe in me. I can, I will give this to you. You'll have everything." He stroked her hand. "Let down your hair for me," he said.

Elsa patted the man's hand. "I'm not tempted," she said, "and I think you should go."

The man squeezed her hand. "Please don't leave me alone. I want you to be happy. We can make each other so happy."

Elsa stood. "I've had enough," she said. "My answer is no."

The man smirked. "I get what I want," he said. "You'll embrace me in the end."

"Get out."

"You think you can order me."

"I said get out."

The man was still smirking. "You pretend to be worried about protocol and etiquette because it keeps people away. You don't want to risk meeting a man whom you might want to marry. But if the right man tried to have his way with you, you'd let him, wouldn't you?" The man stood and advanced on Elsa. "You want it. You can't satisfy that urge on your own, but I can. I will satisfy your craving. I will be the object of your lust. I will give you unending pleasure. I will give you all you ever wanted."

Elsa found herself backed up against the door. Keeping her eyes on the man she reached for the doorknob. It didn't turn.

The man chuckled. "It's locked," he said. "We're alone for as long as we like." He pressed Elsa against the door and pushed his body against hers. Leaning over, he planted his lips on her shoulder and kissed up her neck.

Elsa shivered. The man's lips landed on her cheek. He drew back, gazed into her eyes, and caressed her cheeks with his hands. "Pretend to resist if you must, but you and I both know what you want."

A blizzard of snow pushed the man to the ground. Elsa shot ice at the door and it exploded. She turned to run through it but collided with a flat gray wall that sealed the room from the hallway. "What is this?" she exclaimed.

The man sat up and dusted himself off. "It's to keep you here with me until I'm done with you," he said.

"There was no wall here when you threw Telramund out. What did you do?" Elsa narrowed her eyes. "You're some kind of sorcerer."

The man snickered. "It doesn't matter," he said. "You're trapped."

Elsa sidestepped, circling around the man. When she reached her bed she climbed onto it, remaining focused on the man, and crawled to the other side. 

"What do you think you're doing?" the man said.

Elsa continued to circle around the man until she reached a window. She threw aside the curtain and prepared to leap.

"Oh my God," Elsa gasped. "Oh my God!"

Outside, the sky was covered in black smoke and the light was deep crimson. Beneath her was a blasted, rocky plain pocked with sulfurous vents and geysers of flame. A river of boiling blood washed corpses into a lake of fire.

"Oh my God," Elsa repeated. "Where have you brought me?"

"Hell," the man said. "You're in Hell."

"I'm dead?"

"No. Call it a holiday. You're still alive," the man explained, "but not for long. Your wounds are severe, and besides, Telramund intends to put you on trial tomorrow. There can be only one outcome, of course."

Elsa looked out the window again. Here was a man writhing in a pit of vipers; there a woman drowned in a lake of tar. "You're not real, and this isn't real," Elsa said. "Everything I've been seeing isn't real. I must be ill."

The man nodded. "Your wounds are infected, and your fever has grown quite hot. You won't live very long."

"All this has been a lie."

The man laughed. "Of course not. It's real."

"You're a vision. You're in my mind."

"My presence in your mind is real. The perception of reality is as good as reality itself. I control your perception, so I also control your reality."

Elsa sat on the windowsill and stared out the window at the suffering souls. "It's not the same."

"If this is unreal, then you should indulge yourself. Live out your fantasies. Let your vengeance run wild and murder Telramund a hundred times. Spend a month reveling in passion with me."

Elsa closed the curtain. "I won't cultivate delusion."

"What does it matter if you do?"

"Because it's a lie. You're a lie."

"Every promise I've made to you is real. If you join me, I will free you from your prison. I will heal your wounds and put Telramund in your power. I will provide you with a passionate husband and magicless children."

"You can't do anything."

The man smiled. "Tell yourself that if you like. Tell yourself I'm just a nightmare summoned by illness. Even so, everything I promise will come true."

"Keep your empty promises."

"You think you can reject me, but you've already succumbed," he said. "Take a look at your waistline."

Elsa looked down. An unsightly bulge protruded from her abdomen.

"How many sandwiches did you eat?" the man asked. "You piled everything in front of you on that first one. The second one had salami and cheese. The third was egg and sausage. Then there was pickled herring and smoked salmon and another egg and suddenly"--he slapped her belly--"there you are, with a layer of fat, proving yourself to be a glutton."

Elsa wiggled her belly fat. It hadn't been there a moment ago. "It's a trick."

"How much did you weigh at your coronation?"

"I'm not discussing my weight."

"Can you still fit into your coronation dress?"

"Of course."

"But at your coronation, it was a perfect fit. Now it's a little, hmm, let's call it snug. Don't you think?"

"No."

"You're the same little girl who used to gorge herself on chocolate until she was sick. The girl whose parents had to tell the kitchen to serve her less cake. The girl who gained ten pounds the month her parents died. You know that if you ate as much as you wanted you'd be fat."

"That's not true."

"Don't be ashamed. Look," the man said, gesturing towards the table. The breakfast tray was gone and the table was filled with desserts. There was a three-layer chocolate cake, chocolate-covered fruits, chocolate-covered nuts, dark, milk, and white solid chocolate bars, and a goblet of chocolate ice cream with chocolate syrup drizzled on top. "It's all for you."

"I don't want any."

"In your heart you're a glutton. You dream about desserts. You've dreamed about them for years, a dream about eating and eating and eating. Now you can fulfill your dream. You can eat, and you'll never feel too full, and you'll never gain weight." He touched the bulge on Elsa's stomach, and it shrank. "See?" He picked up two cordial glasses filled with chocolate liqueur and pushed one into Elsa's hand. "This is what you want. Drink with me, and eat."

The man raised the glass to his lips and waited for Elsa. When she didn't move, he took his index finger and guided her glass to her lips. He tilted his own glass back and drank.

Keeping her eyes fixed on the man, Elsa poured her liqueur on the carpet.

The man knocked the glass out of her hand. "Fine then. But I have one more offer to make." He snapped his fingers.

Elsa and the man were in Anna's bedchamber. It was a little after noon. Anna lay on her bed with her legs wide. A woman Elsa recognized as Anna's midwife knelt in front of her. Standing to the side was a girl Elsa didn't know.

Margrete sat down on the bed next to Anna and took her hand. "Three fingers. You're progressing."

Anna's flesh was a sickening gray. She cried out and grimaced. She grunted and pushed on her belly.

"Not yet," said Margrete. "You're not dilated enough."

"What's going on?" asked Elsa.

"Your sister is having a difficult labor," said the man. "It's been about twenty-eight hours. Sixteen of those have been hard labor, but it'll be hours more before she delivers."

"Another trick."

"No, I'm honest when it suits me. By now she's too weak even to stand on her own. She'll die in childbirth, and the baby will be stillborn. Difficult labor runs in the family. Your mother nearly had a younger brother. You know that, right?"

Elsa nodded. When she had been young she had asked why she had two grandfathers but only one grandmother. Papa had taken her aside, explained, and said, "Never bring this up with your mother. It hurts her to think about it." Elsa had run up to Mama, thrown her arms around her, and told her she loved her. When Mama asked what was wrong, Elsa had refused to tell her.

"Here is my final offer," said the man. "Worship me, and your sister and her baby will live, and you will have everything I've promised you. Reject me, and they will die."

"I don't trust you."

"It's the only way to save your sister. If you don't believe me, talk to her yourself."

The man snapped his fingers again. Anna's eyes lit up. "Elsa," she whispered.

"Anna?" asked Elsa. She sat down opposite Margrete.

"I missed you," said Anna.

"Ma'am?" asked Margrete. "Are you feeling alright?"

"Help me up," said Anna.

Elsa and Margrete each took one of Anna's arms and lifted her upright. Anna's skin was clammy. As she rose, she swayed and leaned on Elsa.

"Careful, Ma'am," said Margrete, "let me hold you up."

"It's okay, Elsa has me."

Margrete tightened her grip. "Elsa's not here, Ma'am. Ida, bring some more broth for her."

"Walk with me," said Anna.

With Elsa's and Margrete's support, Anna shuffled around the room. Ida brought her a mug of warm broth, and Anna paused to gulp it.

"The baby's not coming out," Anna said. "I think I'm going to die." As another contraction passed through her, she screamed and clamped down on Elsa's arm. Anna's legs collapsed, and Elsa struggled to keep Anna upright.

"Don't say that, Ma'am," said Margrete. "I've seen women survive long labors before."

Anna shook her head. "I've overheard you. I'm not dilating fast enough. I've been in hard labor for too long. I'm still a long ways away from delivering a baby. No, I know how this is going to turn out. Like grandmother. Elsa, since you're here I have things to tell you."

"Go on," said Elsa, "say whatever you need to."

"Ma'am, your sister's not here," said Margrete.

"Of course she's here. Elsa, I want you to take care of things for me after I'm gone. First, if the baby survives, Kristoff and I agreed to name her Emma, after grandmother. I don't think it's a boy, but if he is we never settled on a boy's name anyway. We joked about naming him Sven Jr., but don't do that to him.

"Second, I want to be buried near Mama and Papa. And if the baby doesn't survive, I want her buried near me.

"Third, you have to take care of Kristoff. You know how he is. He'll avoid everyone and wallow in depression. You can't let him be distraught on his own. Support him. He'll support you, too. And if it comes to it, you have my blessing."

"Wait, what?"

"You're not interested in him, I know, and you'd just reinforce each others' weaknesses anyway. Besides, it'd be gross. But he can be really sweet, and you already love each other like family. I don't want to push you, but if it happens, you have my blessing."

"Oh. Uh, thanks. I guess."

Anna shrieked in pain again, and tears streamed down her face. She collapsed into Elsa's and Margrete's arms and hung between them, panting, until she regained her strength. Heaving herself upright, she said, "Last, Telramund is creepy and I hate him, but don't lower yourself to his level. You're better than he is." She sighed. "That's enough walking. Help me back to bed."

"Do you need more broth, Ma'am?" asked Margrete.

"That would help. Thanks."

Anna sat on the bed, leaning against Elsa, and sipped another mug of broth. "Tell me how you got out of that cell."

"I think I'm still there. I've been seeing visions. Can you see that man standing there?"

"No."

"I think he's the devil." The man grinned and bared his teeth. "He's been trying to tempt me."

"What do you mean?"

"He's offered me revenge against Telramund, lust, gluttony. But I don't want any of that."

"How'd you get here?"

"He's trying to tempt me again. He says he can save you and the baby if I give in."

"Oh. I don't, I just--" Anna wiped a tear from her eye. "I'm so tired."

Elsa hugged Anna. "Do you want it to be over?"

Anna shook her head. "It's not about me." As she went to stroke her belly, another contraction hit. Anna screamed again, long and loud, and dug her nails into Elsa's flesh.

Elsa leaned Anna onto her back. Anna panted. Elsa said, "I want to save you."

"That'd be nice." Anna took Elsa's hand. "It feels good having you here."

"Let me save you. Is it so bad that I want you to live?"

"You don't have to do anything for me," murmured Anna.

Tears fell from Elsa's eyes. "You haven't given up, right?"

Anna was silent. Then a contraction struck her, and she cried out again. Her pain-streaked face twisted as she squeezed Elsa's hand.

The man snapped his fingers, and everything vanished.

 

Elsa blinked. She was in the middle of the castle throne room. Sitting on the throne was the man.

"Get on your knees," the man said.

"Will you save Anna?"

"I'll give you everything I promised."

"I only care about Anna."

"You'll have her and more."

"Don't bother."

"I'm not stingy. You're entitled to it all."

"I don't want it. I sell my soul and you save her life and her baby's. Nothing more or less."

"Fine. Now kneel."

Elsa looked up at the man and the memory of Anna's gray, pained face flashed before her eyes. She stretched one foot behind her and lowered herself to one knee. The thought of Anna's suffering made Elsa's heart ache. The ache spread through her whole chest, and the pain made it hard for her to breathe. She felt her throat tighten, and she wheezed as she tried to suck in air.

Elsa's body felt heavy. Her legs gave way, and she fell to the ground. Ice sprang outwards from her body along the ground, coating the floor and growing in thick fingers up the walls. Snow blew from the ceiling.

Elsa tried to get up, but her arms and legs were numb, and she could hardly move them. Her heart raced, straining against the crushing ache on her chest. She was losing her chance to save Anna, she thought. She tried to support herself on her elbows, but the world spun around her, and in her dizziness she slipped, smacking her face against the floor.

She was dying, Elsa realized. Not in a few days, and not after a trial. Her wounds were too severe. She was dying right now, and there was no way for her to save herself. Knowing that couldn't save herself gave her thoughts sudden clarity, and she felt something like scales fall from her eyes. The man's skin turned fiery red, and he grew horns and a tail. The throne room faded, and she was in a dark cave. Her body ached where she had been pierced. She put her hand to her side and felt blood and pus spilling out.

The visions had been fake. In her illness, Elsa had been trapped by delirium. Everything she had seen was a corruption of reality. The man and his promises were lies.

Elsa craned her neck to look at the man once more. He was standing in front of a throne made of human skulls. "Worship me!" he shouted.

Elsa felt her spirit leave her body. As she drifted upwards, looking down at her corpse, she tried to reach out and catch it, but she couldn't hold on. Unable to keep herself down, she floated towards the ceiling. From afar she fought to open her mouth. She whispered, "No."

 

Elsa felt a warm and ethereal lightness. When she looked around, she was still imprisoned, and she could feel the gloves on her hands, but she was in no pain, and she no longer felt trapped.

Elsa heard a stiff thump on the wall. As she craned her neck to look, there was another thump, and the wall broke. Bricks tumbled inward and a crack of daylight shined through. Through the hole in the wall, she watched a swan fly towards the wall and strike it with his beak. With the swan's third strike, the wall collapsed and the room was flooded with light.

The swan landed next to Elsa, and his presence gave her an overwhelming joy. With two quick pecks at her gloves, he freed her. "Thank you," she said, and in gratitude she stroked the swan's soft head.

The swan turned to leave. "Take me with you," said Elsa. The swan waited, and Elsa climbed on his back. Hugging him, she said, "I will follow you wherever you go."

The swan began to sing, and Elsa joined him in a duet. He flapped his wings, and together they soared into the air. As they rose toward Heaven, lifted by the rhythmic beat of the swan's wings, Elsa relaxed. Nestling her head against the swan's neck, she closed her eyes and slept.

 

That evening, Margrete announced, "The baby's coming any moment now. Next time you have a contraction, push as hard as you can. I'll help."

Knowing that her ordeal was about to be over relieved Anna despite the pain. When her next contraction came and she started to push, however, her relief was replaced by a sudden burning sensation, making her yelp.

"It's working," said Margrete. "Push."

Anna and Margrete pushed, and the burning became a fire in her loins. Anna felt an enormous pressure trying to burst through her.

"Push harder," said Margrete. They pushed again. "Keep pushing!" They pushed a third time.

Anna felt a sudden displacement and emptiness. The burning subsided. Margrete picked up the baby, put it in Anna's arms, and said, "Looks like a daughter. Congratulations."

Anna cradled the girl in her arms. The girl coughed and began to cry. "Aw, dearie, don't cry," said Anna. "Mama's here for you. Mama loves you." Anna kissed the baby.

"Would you like me to clean her off for you, Ma'am?" asked Margrete.

"Let me hold her for a while first. My baby. My dear, sweet baby Emma."

 

There were voices in the distance. "God, the smell is awful."

"Careful, the well is right inside."

Elsa saw dim lights above her. There were at least two, maybe three candles.

"How are we supposed to get her out of there?"

"There's a hoist. You tie her to the hook and he'll lift her. Ladder's over there."

Elsa saw the faint silhouette of a man descend a ladder. "It smells even worse down here." The man paused at the bottom to look at her. Elsa watched him but didn't move. "Send it down," he called. Machinery clanked, and a hook descended from above. "More. More. More. Stop." The hook was right over Elsa's chest. The man unslung a length of rope from his shoulder. "You're so filthy I don't even want to touch you." He tied the rope around Elsa's gloves, around her waist, and around the hook. "Ready," he called. Elsa was lifted into the air.

Elsa was set down in sight of the door. As the one who had operated the hoist approached her, he said, "Oh God, she's the smell." In the dim light from the hallway, Elsa could see that he was a solider.

When the first man had climbed back up the ladder, the second one said, "You take her left side and I'll take her right." The two soldiers each grabbed one of Elsa's gloves and lifted her to her feet. Elsa felt the world spin, and she stretched her feet in all directions, looking for the ground. Her left foot kicked one of the soldiers, and he swore and dropped her glove. The falling glove pulled her to the ground, dragging the other soldier down with her.

A third soldier approached. "I'll get her legs," he said.

The third soldier grabbed her legs, the first two grabbed her gloves again, and together the three of them lifted Elsa.

"Damn it, why did they make these so heavy?" asked one soldier.

"Because she can break through smaller ones," said the soldier carrying her legs. His uniform, Elsa saw, indicated that he was a lieutenant. "These are five centimeters thick."

The four of them tottered to the door. "Where to?" asked one.

"The storeroom down the hall."

The weight of the gloves made progress slow. Elsa recognized this part of the castle now. It was very old, and room they were bringing her to was a disused chapel that had been converted into storage.

The room was bare stone and empty except for a pile of junk in one corner. The soldiers set Elsa face up in the middle of the floor. The lieutenant said to one of the soldiers, "Get the servants to clean her up. Let me know when she's presentable."

The soldiers left, and Elsa lay on the floor. A while later a plain black-haired young woman came in carrying a bucket, a bar of soap, rags, and a brush. Elsa could see her nose wrinkle as she crossed the threshold. "Your Royal Majesty," she said, curtsying, "my name is Kirsten."

Kirsten set the bucket down, put her hands on her hips, and examined Elsa. "Your clothes can't be salvaged. I hope you hated this dress." She went to the door and spoke to the soldiers keeping guard. "She needs fresh clothes. And get me some scissors and a needle and thread, and someone else to help."

Kirsten returned to Elsa. "Now, let's see if we can get you out of this mess." Kirsten began unwrapping the bandage around Elsa's chest. As it fell away, Kirsten gagged, covered her nose and mouth, and then vomited in the corner of the room. She took a deep breath, covered her nose and mouth again, and returned to Elsa, peering at the wound in her side. Then Kirsten went back to the door.

"She needs a doctor." Elsa couldn't hear what the soldiers said. "Idiot, you'd better find one then." Another inaudible reply from the soldiers. "Can't do your job so I have to do it for you." Kirsten left.

When Kirsten returned, she was carrying another bucket, more rags, and a pair of scissors. "The doctor has been sent for, Your Majesty. In the meantime I'm going to remove your clothes."

Kirsten cut away Elsa's clothes. She cut Elsa's dress down the length of her body on both sides, cut the arms off, pulled the sleeves out of the gloves, and cut down the length of Elsa's arms. She cut Elsa's corset on both sides, then snipped through her petticoat. When Kirsten cut away Elsa's shift, she dropped her scissors, ran for the corner of the room, and vomited again. She panted and spat mucus out of her mouth before returning to Elsa. Covering her mouth and nose, she finished cutting away the shift and removed the rags from Elsa's body. "I'll have these burned," Kirsten said, dumping them in the corner where she had vomited.

There was a knock on the door, and a girl stepped in carrying a pile of clothes. "Oh my God, what's that smell?" asked the girl.

"Treat Her Majesty with respect, Ida."

"My apologies. Pardon me, Your Majesty," said Ida, curtsying.

"Don't blame her for her condition," said Kirsten. "Nobody cleaned her wounds, and she couldn't use a chamber pot in those gloves. Help me wash her."

The two girls scrubbed the grime away from Elsa's body, washing her from head to toe. When they reached the wounds in her side, arms, and legs, the soap stung, making Elsa draw in her breath.

"Her wounds are disgusting," said Ida.

"I doubt the doctor will be able to help her," said Kirsten.

"What do we do about the gloves?" asked Ida.

"Nothing," said Kirsten. "Do you know what kind of trouble we'd get in for taking them off?"

"Alright." Ida gave Elsa a few more strokes of her brush and announced, "I'm done with my side."

"Only with the front. We still have to get her back. Help me lift her glove."

Ida and Kirsten lifted Elsa's right glove over her body and set it down on the opposite side of her left glove, flipping Elsa onto her stomach. They returned to scrubbing. When they were done, Ida fetched a blanket from the pile of clothes she had brought and dried Elsa. Ida and Kirsten flipped Elsa again.

Ida tucked the blanket under Elsa's body and wrapped her in it. "Do you need more help?" Ida asked.

"We're done until the doctor shows up, but then I'll need your help dressing her."

Elsa recognized Doctor Jonsson when he arrived. "Your Majesty," he said, bowing. "Please tell me about your condition."

Elsa was silent. Kirsten said, "We haven't heard her say anything at all."

"Your Majesty?" asked Jonsson. Elsa remained silent. Jonsson turned to Kirsten. "Miss, please tell me what you've seen."

"She's been stabbed in her side, in both her arms, and in both legs. The wounds were filled with pus when we started washing her. Her skin is hot, and I think she might be feverish. And I don't think she's had anything to eat or drink in days."

Jonsson looked Elsa up and down, then lifted the blanket far enough to examine Elsa's wounds. When he was done looking, he went to the door. "Get me wine, boiled water, bread, and clean bandages," he said to the soldier on guard.

Jonsson knelt next to Elsa, and said, "Your Majesty, your condition is grievous. You may not live, but I will treat you as best as I can."

When the soldier returned, Jonsson washed Elsa's wounds with the water. He soaked the bandages with wine and wrapped Elsa's wounds. Finally, he offered Elsa the bread and the dregs of the wine. "Take this," he said. "Eat and drink."

Elsa ate the bread and drank the wine. She hadn't realized how hungry she was.

"I've done what I can," said Jonsson. "I hope you survive."

Jonsson left, and Kirsten and Ida dressed Elsa. The arms of her shift stretched enough to be put on over the gloves, and the corset and petticoat were no problem. To put her in her dress, they unstitched the seams along the arms and enough of the seams down the sides to let the gloves fit through. They put the dress over Elsa's head and began restitching the arms and sides. It was delicate work, but the two of them were patient.

The lieutenant entered without knocking. "Is she ready yet?"

"Her arms aren't done," said Kirsten.

"Doesn't matter. The trial's about to begin." The lieutenant turned to the door. "Men, it's time to get her."

 

Telramund had opted to hold the trial in the castle where there was less risk of a riot. For this, the ballroom had been converted into a courtroom. There was a raised seat for the judge at the front of the room. Next to it was a chair for witnesses. Three chairs were set up to the side, one for Elsa and one each to hold her gloves. A stenographer sat at a desk in the corner. To ensure everyone's safety, soldiers were stationed around the room. The rest of the room was filled with chairs, couches, and whatever else could be found to seat people.

To give the event a public character, Telramund had compelled the leading citizens of the city to attend. Every gentleman, every rich merchant, and every master craftsman had received a knock on their door from a party of soldiers yesterday. They had been told that they were expected to attend the trial and that there would be consequences for their absence. Telramund was pleased to see them filling the ballroom.

Telramund was also gratified that Anna was there, seated in the front row and cradling her daughter Emma. He hoped that showing her that Elsa's trial was honest would help her to forgive him. It wasn't honest, since he had the judge's family in custody, but Anna wouldn't know that, and besides, he had to ensure a sensible outcome. On top of that, he had asked for Elsa to be cleaned up and made presentable just so that Anna knew he was not being malicious. Since Anna's life had been dominated by her sister for years, he didn't expect Anna to reconcile with him soon, yet her attendance made sure that she would see firsthand the justice of his actions.

Anna felt tired. Labor had exhausted her and made her lose a lot of blood. Emma needed to be fed every couple of hours, so Anna hadn't been able to sleep through the night. She would have refused to come except that Elsa was supposed to be here. Even so, walking was so painful and difficult that she had needed help to reach the ballroom. At least Emma was sleeping right now.

The main doors opened, and the crowd turned to watch. Elsa was carried to the front of the room by three soldiers. Anna was shocked by Elsa's appearance. Her face was pale, her cheeks were sunken, and her lips were dry and cracked. Her body was limp almost to the point of lifelessness. The soldiers placed Elsa in her seat and rested the gloves on the two chairs on either side of her.

As the judge entered, everyone but Elsa and Anna rose. Anna recognized him as a local magistrate. She wondered whether he supported Telramund or whether he, too, was being forced to participate. As the judge took his seat, the courtroom sat back down.

The judge spoke. "Queen Elsa of Arendelle is accused of witchcraft. This is a grave and unusual charge. Let us begin with the prosecution. Prosecutor, your opening statement."

Telramund stepped forward. Anna steeled herself. Turning to the crowd, Telramund said, "The queen is accused of witchcraft. The law is clear on witchcraft." He picked up a nearby book and read aloud. "A woman is guilty of witchcraft if she is seen to practice magic. The penalty for witchcraft is death." He put the book down. "The queen is a powerful witch. She used magic from a young age. She defied her parents so that she could be a witch. Even after nearly killing her sister she didn't give up witchcraft. Instead she cultivated her abilities. She became powerful enough to freeze the whole kingdom and ruthless enough to use that ability when it suited her dark purposes. She was willing to sacrifice every one of us to her thirst for elemental power, and she was unafraid to nearly kill her sister a second time. You know that as long as she is alive you are not safe. You know this in your heart. I will prove to you that as a matter of law, she is a witch. I will prove to you that as a matter of law, she deserves death. I will give you your safety and your freedom back."

"You have no power over me," interrupted Elsa.

"Quiet!" roared Telramund.

Elsa continued, "I am the queen. I am not elected. I am not subject to anyone on Earth. I am subject only to God."

"Someone shut her up," said Telramund.

"I rule by His grace alone. If my rule pleases Him, He will strike you down. If it does not, it is Him, not you, who will depose me."

Anna was astonished. Elsa had never been religious. Now she sounded pious, and her face had a quiet serenity.

"If I'm wrong, may God strike me down on this spot!" boasted Telramund.

"I dreamed last night," intoned Elsa. "A swan broke my chains. I climbed on his back and we soared to Heaven together." Her voice rose. "My swan is coming for me! He will lead me out of the darkness and into the light!"

With a thunderous clap the ballroom doors burst open. A knight clad in a full suit of plate armor stood at the threshold. He wielded a sword in his right hand and bore a white shield in his left. Painted on his shield was a red swan.

The knight strode to the front of the room. At the foot of the dais he dropped to one knee and spoke in a ringing tenor voice. "Your Majesty Queen Elsa of Arendelle, I have come to offer you my service."

"Guards, get him out of here," said Telramund. A crowd of soldiers rushed at the knight and surrounded him. He rose to his feet and swung his shield. His blow lifted the soldiers into the air, causing them to fly back and crash on the ground. The soldiers charged the knight again. He swung his shield a second time and drove them back.

"Fix bayonets!" ordered the lieutenant. The soldiers charged at the knight a third time, but their bayonets bounced off of his armor. With another swing of the knight's shield, the soldiers collapsed.

"Halt," ordered the lieutenant. The soldiers kept back from the knight. To Telramund, the lieutenant said, "Sorry Sir, but we can't seem to make him flinch."

Telramund called to the knight, "Who are you?"

The knight ignored him and returned to one knee. "Queen Elsa, my service comes with one condition. Never ask my name or my land. If you ask my name or my land, I must depart before the next sunset. If you accept this condition I will serve you until you dismiss me or until the end of my days on Earth."

"O knight, I agree to your terms. Do what you were sent to do."

The knight rose. "Count Friedrich of Telramund, on behalf of Queen Elsa of Arendelle I challenge you to trial by combat."

Telramund laughed. "This is like a bad theatrical production. You show up dressed like some medieval do-gooder and expect me to accept your challenge? Of course not."

"Queen Elsa has chosen me as her champion. We will fight, and God will decide the winner."

"This is ridiculous. Lieutenant, hand me a musket." Telramund held out his hand, and the lieutenant gave him a musket and a cartridge. Telramund tore open the cartridge, primed the musket, shoved the lead ball into the muzzle, and rammed down the cartridge. He raised the musket to his shoulder and cocked it. Telramund said, "I accept your challenge. Come at me."

The knight advanced on Telramund. When the knight was a foot away from the muzzle of the musket, Telramund fired. The musket bellowed and hurled a lead ball at the knight. When the ball hit the knight's armor, it bounced off, making a faint clink, and fell to the ground. The knight was unmoved.

As Telramund gaped, the knight slammed Telramund with his shield. Telramund stumbled and fell backwards. Leaping to his feet, he raised the musket over his head, and with a roar he clouted the knight on the head. The knight didn't flinch. Telramund swung the musket again, but it bounced off the knight, slipped from Telramund's grasp, and flew out of reach.

Unarmed, Telramund skirted around the knight. "Give me another musket! A loaded one, quick!" he shouted as he backed away. A soldier tossed him another musket. Again, Telramund waited until the knight was too close to miss. Smoke and fire burst from the musket, but when the ball hit the knight, it bounced off, harmless, and fell to the ground.

The knight smacked Telramund over the head with his shield. Telramund was knocked to the ground. Before Telramund could get up, the knight planted his armored foot on Telramund's chest and put his sword at Telramund's throat.

"My lady," said the knight, "what is to be done with him?"

"He receives mercy," said Elsa. "Friedrich of Telramund, you are stripped of your title. Your lands are the property of the crown. You have one hour to leave Arendelle, and your person is under my protection for that time. If you are found in Arendelle after that hour, you will be executed."

"I don't answer to you," said Telramund.

"She is your liege," said the knight. "Do as she says."

Telramund tried to get up, but the knight leaned forward, placing his weight on Telramund's chest and pressing the point of his sword into Telramund's throat. "Fine," said Telramund. "I yield."

The knight withdrew his foot. "My lady, how else may I serve you?"

"Free me from my bonds, O knight."

The knight turned to ascend the dais. Telramund glanced towards Anna, then, keeping a watchful eye on the knight, pulled a knife from his boot. Telramund leaped towards Anna and tore Emma from her arms. Emma shrieked. Telramund held the point of his knife to Emma's chest. "Stay back," he said.

"Give me back my daughter!" yelled Anna.

"Tell him to lay down his weapons and armor!"

The knight said, "Thou knave, return her daughter and repent!"

"I said to lay down your weapons and armor!"

The knight turned to Elsa. Elsa said, "He has lost my protection."

The knight leaped at Telramund, travelling the whole length of the room in an eyeblink. The knight's sword swung down, across Telramund's shoulders and above Emma's head, slicing clean through Telramund's neck. Telramund's head fell off, and blood sprayed from the stump. The knight dropped his sword, and using his free hand, caught Emma in his shield as Telramund collapsed.

The crowd gasped. Telramund's head rolled to a stop. Its mouth, not yet aware that its owner was dead, was fixed in a twisted grin. His limbs flailed about on the ground. Soon the flow of blood from his neck ebbed, and the body became motionless.

Emma was still crying. The knight, cradling her in his arms, presented her to Anna, who snatched Emma away.

Elsa proclaimed, "I decree amnesty for all who lay down their weapons. Anyone who refuses to lay down their weapons will be hanged."

A soldier in the corner of the room laid down his musket. Then another, then a third, and then it was a race to disarmament.

The knight retrieved his sword, wiped the blood off, and sheathed it. He returned to Elsa, loosed the screws that held Elsa's gloves tight around her wrists, and drew the gloves off.

A man in the crowd stood and shouted, "Long live the queen!" Another man stood and repeated, "Long live the queen!" Soon the whole assembly was standing and chanting, "Long live the queen!"

"I must ask for your assistance again, O knight," said Elsa. "I'm too weak to walk."

"I'll carry you," the knight said.

"Take me to my room. I'll tell you the way."

The knight placed his hands under her back and legs and picked her up. As he turned to the crowd, a roar of cheering and clapping broke out. Elsa reached beneath his helmet and stroked his cheek, and Anna's mouth fell open in shock. As the knight carried her out of the ballroom, the crowd resumed its ecstatic chant. "Long live the queen! Long live the queen! Long live the queen!"


	5. Chapter 5

"Tell them to wait for me," said Anna to Kirsten. "Ida, help me walk." Kirsten pushed her way through the crowd in the ballroom. Anna stood and, with Ida's help, began to walk. The ache from labor made every movement slow.

The knight had made it almost to Elsa's room before Kirsten caught up with them. He and Elsa waited in the hallway for Anna. Elsa, still in the knight's arms, said, "Anna, forgive me. I couldn't save you."

"Are you okay?"

"I still love you very much. I didn't know how to do any better."

"Don't feel bad. I love you too."

"Will you forgive me?"

"Of course."

"I'm not strong enough to save anyone on my own. I don't have that kind of power."

"It's okay. You can rest now."

"No, I can't. The war isn't over."

"You can't even walk. You need a break."

"Have Telramund's head put on a pike and sent to the front. Offer Borgstrom permanent exile. If he refuses, the army is to annihilate him."

"Elsa, you're too tired to make these kinds of decisions. Calm down. We've made enough mistakes."

"I can't look back. I have to do my duty."

"No!" Anna shook her finger at Elsa. "You're in no condition to rule. And I'm a mother now, and mothers call people out on this sort of thing, so I'm calling you out. You know better. Stop it."

Elsa closed her eyes and was silent for a moment. When she reopened her eyes, she said, "You're right. Okay. I'm tired, anyway." She yawned. "And hungry and ill. My head hasn't stopped spinning since they took me out of the darkness."

In Elsa's room, the knight laid Elsa on her bed. "My lady, is there anything further I can do for you?"

"Many things," said Elsa, "but ring that bell over there and I'll be fine for now. The servants will take care of me."

"As you wish." The knight rang the handbell, glanced once more at Elsa, and left, leaving Anna and Elsa alone.

Anna asked, "Are you sure you're okay?"

"I'm weak right now, but I'll be fine. Go find Kristoff. I'm sure he'll want to see your daughter. What's her name, anyway?"

"Emma."

"Like in my vision. It really happened."

"What?"

"Was I there during your labor? Did we walk around the room together?"

"Well, I imagined we did, but you were locked up. Pretending you were there calmed me down."

"I was really there. You told me you were going to name her Emma, that you wanted to be buried near Mama and Papa, and that it would be okay if I married Kristoff." Elsa smiled. "That last one was sweet but unnecessary."

"Elsa, this is creepy. How do you know what I said?"

"I'll explain later, but I'm tired. You should go to Kristoff."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah."

"Okay. But get some rest."

 

The knight was standing guard outside Elsa's room. When Anna left, he asked, "Pardon me, Ma'am, but is the queen alright?"

"She says she'll be fine. Come with me."

Ida helped Anna walk to the dungeon, and the knight followed. Anna asked the knight, "Just who are you anyway?"

"I'm not allowed to say," the knight said. "Only the queen may ask me that question, and if she does, I have to leave."

"Um, can you maybe expand on that a little? Just a teensy-weensy bit?"

"There's nothing I can say."

"You're not helping."

"I know. I'm sorry, but it's unavoidable."

"You freed us, and you saved my daughter. I'm grateful, very grateful, and I'd like to know your name so that I can properly thank you."

"It's not possible."

"Just a hint?"

"Again, I'm sorry."

"You're strange." Emma started to cry.

"I must seem so. I killed one of the lords and carried off your sister. I'd be suspicious of anyone who showed up in my castle and did that."

Anna paused to feed Emma, and the knight turned away to maintain propriety. "You have a castle?" asked Anna.

"Yes. I'm next in line for the throne of my kingdom. If necessary, my sister will rule in my place until my return."

"Where are you from, anyway?"

"I'm not allowed to say."

"How'd you get here?"

"I sailed."

"Where's the rest of the crew?"

"I came alone in a small barge drawn by a swan."

"What? That doesn't even make sense."

The knight shrugged. "That's what happened."

They found Kristoff and Olaf a few steps outside of the dungeon. Kristoff was limping, and his head was bandaged. "Anna!" he called. He hobbled to meet her.

"Kristoff! Are you okay?"

"Good enough. Is this her?"

"Yes. She arrived last night. Did they tell you?"

"No. They told me you were in labor, though." Kristoff gazed at Emma. "You're so cute. You look like your Mama, don't you?" He kissed Emma on her head.

"Aww. She's adorable," said Olaf. "Does she talk yet?"

"No, Olaf, not for a long time."

"Who's this?" asked Olaf.

"Uh, well I don't quite know how to introduce him."

"I'll introduce myself then." Olaf held out his hand. "Hi, I'm Olaf, and I like warm hugs!"

The knight jumped back. "What kind of sorcerous beast are you?" he asked. 

"I'm a snowman. Elsa made me."

"The queen is a sorceress?"

Anna said, "She was born with it."

The knight stared at Olaf, who continued to hold out his hand. The knight reasoned aloud, "I wouldn't have been sent here if she were wicked. Her magic must be a blessing from God. Hello, Olaf." They shook hands. "Pleased to meet you."

"What's your name?"

"I'm sorry, but I'm not allowed to say."

"Oh, is this a guessing game? Is your name Jorg?"

"Er, no."

"Ulf? Kjell?"

"I can't say."

"Hmm. Could it be Soren? What about Bjorn?"

"Kristoff, did they tell you what happened?" asked Anna.

"No. A soldier came in, told us the rebellion was over, and unlocked our cells. I told Kai and Gerda I'd be fine and asked them to find out what's going on."

"Ooh, I know, maybe it's one of our names. Are you named Sven? Sven is a popular name around here."

Anna said, "This man here--I don't mean to be rude, but I don't know how to refer to you."

"However you like. I appreciate the difficulty," the knight said.

"Anyway, this man killed Telramund."

"What!" shouted Kristoff. "Telramund is dead?"

"Yeah."

The knight said, "He threatened your daughter. The queen gave me permission to execute him."

Kristoff stroked Emma's head. "Thank you," he said. "Who are you?"

"I'm not allowed to say. Only the queen may ask my name, and if she does, I must depart before the next sunset."

"You're going to have to explain that to me again."

"I couldn't serve her unless she agreed to those terms. I know it's strange, but there's no way for me to explain further."

"Why are you dressed like a knight?"

"I am a knight."

"There aren't knights anymore."

"No wonder your queen is under attack! Find me some boys and I'll begin training them."

Olaf asked, "Can I be a knight?" He tapped the knight's armor. "Are these real?"

Kristoff said, "There haven't been knights in armor in hundreds of years. Where are you from?"

"I can't say that, either. But where I come from, men have trained as knights for as long as anyone remembers."

"Your home sounds out of touch."

"With the world, yes."

"Regardless, I'm in your debt for saving my daughter and for freeing us. How can I reward you?"

"It was my duty. No reward is necessary."

"At least stay with us a while. We'll repay you with hospitality."

Anna was beginning to worry. The knight was so reluctant to share anything about himself that she wondered what he was hiding. Kristoff hadn't been in the ballroom, so he hadn't seen Elsa's strange behavior towards him. When she was alone with Kristoff, Anna decided, she would talk to him.

 

The next morning, the knight, no longer in his armor, marveled at the sumptuousness of the castle's chapel. It verged on gaudy, he thought. It was small, having only three rows of pews and a single altar, but every surface was decorated. The front of the altar was a painted carving of the Last Supper. Sitting atop the altar was a jewel-encrusted gold crucifix. Covering the wall behind it was a painted and carved wooden reredos depicting the empty tomb in the center, Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane on the left, Peter denying Jesus on the right, and Christ in Majesty on top. Hanging two-by-two on the walls to the right were oil paintings of the anointing of David by Samuel, the rebellion of Absalom, the Judgment of Solomon, and Josiah renewing the covenant. On the left, the exterior side, tall stained glass windows depicted the Annunciation, the Adoration of the Magi, Jesus healing the Centurion's servant, and Jesus healing the man who had been blind from birth. The lectern's stand was carved into a depiction of Moses receiving the Ten Commandments, and the parament on top was rich purple velvet embroidered with a wreathed Chi Rho and an Alpha and Omega. The back wall had an oil painting depicting the Last Judgment.

The knight heard an irregular tramping coming from the hall. Soon Kristoff entered, walking with a cane. Leaning on his cane, he reverenced the altar and sat next to the knight. "I was told you had asked where the chapel was," said Kristoff.

"I wanted to celebrate Mass, but it seems you don't hold it at the same time of day that we do."

"We don't hold Mass at all. None of us are religious. We use it only on Easter."

The knight was puzzled. "How can you stand not to worship?"

Kristoff shrugged. "It's never been important to us. Anna says that after her parents died, she had a religious phase, but it only lasted a few months. Elsa's never been religious at all. The chapel was built by their father's father. Well, except for the stained glass. It hadn't been started when he died, and their mother changed the selection of scenes."

"And you? Are you religious?"

"When I was young, I only paid attention to the church if I thought I could get a meal from them. Once my ice business was stable enough to support me, it faded out of my mind."

"This is a very strange kingdom. No knights and no faith. Next you'll tell me there are no serfs."

"Nope, no serfs."

"Who works the fields, then?"

"We have plenty of farmers, but they rent. They're not bound to the land. They leave if they want."

"Allowing people to leave their lord is an invitation to chaos."

"Stopping people who want to leave invites trouble. Arendelle has been peaceful for a long time."

"But how? In my kingdom, each man serves his lord, from the lowest serf up to the king, and each man promises to protect his vassals, from the king on down. The serfs serve their lords, the lords serve the king, and the king serves Christ, the King of Kings. But in your kingdom, the queen doesn't serve anyone. The lords don't serve the queen. The serfs don't serve their lords. With nothing to bind people together, violence is inevitable. I wonder how you haven't all destroyed each other. Though you do seem to be on your way."

"The queen loves the people, and they love the queen. Most of them, anyway. Because she loves them, she gives them freedom. The ones who abuse it are punished in the end. Having a free people has made Arendelle more peaceful and prosperous than her neighbors."

"What a singular place. I seem to have no purpose here."

"What do you mean?"

"I'm a knight in a land with no knights, a faithful man in a land with no faith, a lord in a land with no lords. I am the vassal of a queen who does not want vassals."

"Yeah. Let's talk about your place here. Anna tells me that yesterday in the ballroom, the queen was a little friendly with you."

The knight blushed. "Yes, she was. I should confess that I enjoyed it."

"There's no shame in that. No shame. She's beautiful, after all. The strange part is that she's never been affectionate with anyone except her sister."

"Never? I would have expected her to be surrounded by suitors."

"There was a time right after she became queen when eligible young men would find excuses to visit. Anna and I tried to encourage her, but she was never more than polite to them. She's always insisted that she doesn't want to get married."

"Ever? I've never known a woman who didn't ever want to marry."

"Ever. She's said so over and over."

"Until now."

"Maybe. I hope you understand why we're concerned."

"I know that it won't quiet your fears, but I should tell you my dream." The knight raised his eyes to the carving of Christ sitting on His throne. "I had a dream in which I was a swan. To escape the heat, I flew into a prison where a beautiful maiden was being held. I knew that her imprisonment was unjust, so I freed her from her chains. She asked to join me, so I offered to let her ride on my back. Her cool skin comforted me, and together we sang and flew up to Heaven. I felt indescribable bliss."

The knight continued, "I knew what the dream meant, but I didn't know who the maiden was. During Mass that morning, a voice told me that I was to rescue Queen Elsa of Arendelle from unjust imprisonment. I put on my armor, went to the dock, and found a barge and a swan waiting for me. It took me here. You know the rest."

"What does the dream mean?"

"She's my future wife."

Kristoff weighed his possible responses before asking, "What do you hope to gain?"

"What do you mean?"

"You say that you already have a kingdom waiting for you. So why are you interested in the throne of Arendelle?"

"I don't care for power or riches. I'm here to serve the queen."

"You rescued her, and for that she's grateful. Why do you think she'll be so grateful that she'll marry you?"

"It won't be out of gratitude. It will be because the Lord has commanded it."

"You met her once, and for just minutes. When she comes to her senses, she'll see that all you have is a pretty face. You're no prince. You didn't even bother to make up a story about who you are or where you're from. You plan to seduce her and take the throne."

"No! Absolutely not!"

"Arendelle has endured two usurpers in the space of just a few years. We have no patience for a third, and you're not as clever as the other two. You revealed your plan too early." Kristoff stood and leaned on his cane again. "The queen no longer needs your services. I advise you to leave today."

"It's her exclusive right to dismiss me."

"Your valor still entitles you to a token of our gratitude. We'll give you some gold if you reconsider your dream." Kristoff hobbled away.

 

When Elsa awoke, Anna, Kristoff, and Emma came to see her. Some of the color had returned to Elsa's cheeks, and she wasn't as feverish as yesterday.

"How are you feeling?" asked Anna.

"Doctor Jonsson says my recovery is remarkable, but I only feel a little better. The room still spins if I move my head too quickly. How are you? Recovered from labor?"

"Still sore and aching. I can't move very fast. Feeding Emma kept me up all night again."

"Can I hold her?"

"Sure."

Anna laid Emma in Elsa's arms, and Elsa rocked her. "Oh my, your eyes and your cheeks make you look just like your Mama, don't they? Auntie Elsa thinks you're adorable." Emma groaned and fussed, splaying her arms and legs in all directions. "Are you done with your Auntie already? Back to your Mama then." Anna scooped up Emma and bounced her to calm her down.

"She doesn't let me hold her either," complained Kristoff. "She only wants her Mama."

"She'll come around," said Anna. "I came around to you, didn't I?" She pecked Kristoff on the cheek.

"You're still so cute together," said Elsa. "That reminds me. How is my swan doing? Where is he?"

"Well, he's okay, I guess," said Kristoff. "I talked to him this morning. We need to decide how to reward him. Gold would be the best, I think. It's easy for him to carry."

"Carry? He's not going."

"No, he'll be going soon. Today, if we can give him his reward. He has other damsels to save. That sort of thing. You know?"

"No, I don't. We're going to get married."

"You can't marry a man you just met!" said Kristoff. "You know better than that!"

"I know what my dream meant. He's my true love."

"Oh my God. It must run in the family."

"I want to see him. Where is he?"

"Emma, please don't do this to your Papa when you grow up. Please."

Anna asked, "Elsa, what's gotten into you? Why are you saying this?"

"Something has changed within me. Something is not the same. Ever since I got out of the darkness, I've felt different."

"I don't understand."

"Promise me you won't laugh?"

Anna sat on the bed and took Elsa's hand. "Promise."

"Okay." Elsa took a deep breath. "I had visions while I was down there. It started with Papa and Mama telling me I was a failure. And you, Anna, you told me that you hated me. It was terrible. I cried a lot. For hours, I think. The visions kept coming, and they got worse. I was trying to save you, and I watched you die over and over, more times than I could count. I could feel myself dying, too. That wasn't even the worst part. The worst part was the devil." Elsa's voice caught in her throat for a moment, and then she began to whimper. "I saw the devil. He's real. I never believed in him before, but he's real. He knew everything I wanted, and he offered it to me. The worst part was, I was going to do it. I was going to sell my soul because he showed me you, Anna." Elsa began to tear up. "He showed me you in labor. I thought you were going to die, and I couldn't bear it. I don't want to be a slave to the devil. I just want to be with you." She broke down in sobs.

Anna leaned forward, held Emma in one arm, and put her other arm around Elsa. "Shhh. It's okay. You're okay. You didn't sell your soul. There's no devil."

"There is!" insisted Elsa. "I saw him!"

"It was just in your head."

Elsa shook her head and sniffled. "It happened. I know it happened."

Kristoff asked, "What about your dream?"

"At the end of my last vision I died. Not a vision of dying. I think I really did die. But the next thing I knew I was dreaming. A swan broke me out of prison and I flew away with him. And he made me happy, happier than I've ever been." Elsa wiped her eyes and nose with her sleeve. "I know that the visions came from the devil. I think my dream came from God."

"And the knight is the swan, and your dream means you marry him?"

"Yeah."

"You've never wanted to get married before."

"Everything is different now."

Kristoff said, "You've been through a difficult time. You must be grateful to him for saving you. But that doesn't mean you have to get married."

"I want to, and not just because he saved me. He was sent to me. We're meant for each other."

"It's a bad idea," said Kristoff. "He heard that you were in trouble and thought that he could take advantage of the situation."

"How do you explain the swan on his shield? I didn't mention the swan to anyone until right before he arrived."

Kristoff shrugged. "Luck. Swans have been popular symbols for hundreds of years. It doesn't mean anything."

"What about his battle with Telramund? He was shot twice and not harmed."

"Something could have gone wrong with the musket. Maybe it didn't have enough powder."

"It's not a coincidence."

"Being rescued by a knight in shining armor only happens in fairy tales."

"You really don't think he was sent for me?"

"No, I don't."

"What about you, Anna?"

"I know I felt you with me while I was in labor, and you predicted the swan. But you're moving so fast. Moving fast got me in a lot of trouble before."

Elsa sighed. "Okay, how about this? I'm not going to marry him right away. We're all going to get to know him a little better. If I still feel like this a week from now, then I'll ask him."

"A week isn't long enough," said Anna. Emma began crying, so Anna rocked her.

"Two weeks? That might be all I can stand."

"How about a year?" said Kristoff. "Like me and Anna."

"I don't want to wait a year. I'll wait at least two weeks. After that, we'll see how we all feel."

"Promise?" asked Anna.

"I promise."

"Thanks." Anna stood and offered Emma her breast, but Emma rejected it. "I think she needs her diaper changed," Anna said. "Come on Emma, let's go to the nursery. And Elsa, thanks for listening."

 

On their way to the nursery, Kristoff said, "I'm worried about her."

"Me too," said Anna.

"I talked to him this morning. He says he's going to marry her. He says he had a dream where he was a swan and he rescued a girl. Which is just too convenient."

"Maybe he heard about Elsa's dream."

"When she recovers I'm sure she'll send him away. She's just grateful. Grateful and lonely and still half-mad from the darkness."

Anna nodded. "Maybe, but how do you explain the swan on his shield?"

"I don't know."

While they were in the nursery, Gerda came in. "Pardon me, Your Majesty, but there's a disturbance you ought to know about."

"Go on," said Anna, as she pondered the diaper. She turned it over and folded it again.

"It's the young master Alexander. He's very upset."

"Uh huh." Somehow the diaper was folded wrong. Anna shook it out and began again.

"He wants to see his father. Last night we told him that his father wasn't available. This morning he's being insistent."

"Have you told him his father is dead?"

"No, Ma'am."

"What does Elsa say?"

"I didn't want to trouble her, Ma'am."

Anna pinned the diaper on Emma. "I'll do it. Bring him here."

A few minutes later, Gerda led Alexander into the nursery. His eyes were red and wet, and he was carrying his favorite toy reindeer.

"Where's Papa?" Alexander asked.

"He's not here," said Anna.

"I want Papa!" Alexander shouted.

"Your Papa can't see you right now."

"No!" Alexander cried, throwing the reindeer across the room. He began wailing. Anna and Kristoff waited. When Alexander saw that they weren't moved, he got on the floor and wailed louder to prove he was serious. They continued to let him cry.

When Alexander had given up and reduced his wails to an occasional moan, Anna said, "Your Papa's gone away."

Alexander screamed and sniffled. Between sobs, he asked, "Can I go with him?"

"No. You have to wait here."

"When is Papa coming back?" Alexander wiped his eyes.

"He's going to be gone for a long time."

"Like an hour?"

"Longer."

"Two hours?"

"It's not really like that."

Kristoff broke in, "Just tell him already."

Anna cradled Emma and kissed her. "You do it," she said.

"Fine." Kristoff got down on one knee and put his hand on Alexander's shoulder. "Your father is dead. He's not coming back." Anna felt a tear fall from her eye.

"Okay," said Alexander. He seemed calm, Anna thought. Then he asked, "Will Papa come back tomorrow?"

Anna burst into tears. Kristoff embraced her. She rested her head on his shoulder and cried while he rocked her from side to side. "It was just like this when Mama and Papa died," she whispered. "Just like this. I got called into a room, and Kai and Gerda were there, and, and," she sniffled, "they didn't want to tell me either. So I didn't know what was going on. I just knew that they were sad and it was important. And then they told me and I didn't believe them. I was sure it was a mistake. Mama and Papa were coming back. They had to." She sniffled again. "And they never did."

Anna felt tiny arms around her leg. She looked down and saw Alexander giving her a hug. "It's okay. Papa says we'll all be happy soon."

Anna passed Emma to Kristoff, knelt, and hugged Alexander. "You're too young for this, aren't you? You don't understand yet. Maybe it's better that way. I hate your father, but I don't hate you." She let go of him, sniffled, and paused to wipe tears from her eyes. "If you like, you can play with the toys here. How does that sound?"

Alexander, open-mouthed, looked over at the toys, then looked back at Anna, then at the toys again. He hugged Anna again. "Thank you!" he said.

"Have fun." To Kristoff, Anna said, "Let's talk to Elsa. He can't stay here forever."

 

Elsa was asleep when Kristoff and Anna returned to her. Rather than wake her, they waited until she woke that afternoon to talk to her about Alexander. "I don't want him here forever," said Anna. "He reminds of Telramund."

Elsa said, "He's done no wrong, so we can't execute him. Someone needs to raise him. I don't care who as long as he doesn't want revenge when he grows up."

"Nobody would want to harbor the son of the biggest traitor in Arendelle," said Kristoff.

"Borgstrom might take him," said Anna.

Elsa said, "Even if Borgstrom accepts exile and takes Alexander, Alexander would grow up hating us. I want to stop that before it starts."

Anna said, "So we place him with someone else. We don't tell them who he is. We don't let him take anything that connects him to his father. He forgets his family and lives a quiet life."

"He'll find out some day," said Kristoff. "Whoever we place him with, he'll find out."

"You never found out who your father was," said Anna.

"What's there to find out? Whoever he was, he didn't try to usurp the throne. Telramund is notorious. People will remember him, and they'll remember that he had a son. Alexander will figure it out."

Elsa said, "If we place him with the right family, then he won't want revenge. We need a family that supports us."

"Maybe there's a childless family who would want him," said Anna.

"He's lost his title," mused Kristoff, "so he shouldn't expect to grow up among the nobility. There are lots of families of tradesmen in the city. Maybe one of them is childless. We can pay them a stipend to take care of him."

Elsa nodded. "I'll ask the Bishop. He would know."

"No, I'll do it," said Kristoff. "You need rest."

Anna asked, "Are you sure?"

"Yeah. Growing up on the street was hard. Everyone needs a family."

 

Kristoff didn't want there to be any notes or letters left behind that might make it possible for Alexander to trace his parentage, and besides, he was still uncomfortable reading and writing. He had never had much time for books when he was in the ice business, and he had always dealt with customers face to face. He just didn't have much experience with letters, so while he could sound out words, it was slow. Sometimes he envied the fluency with which Elsa and Anna could read and write. He knew that he was getting better with practice, but today he let himself make an excuse.

Kristoff had a messenger sent to ask the Bishop to come to the castle. That evening, when the Bishop arrived, Kristoff met him in the nursery. "Bishop Mikael, it's good to see you," Kristoff said.

"As it is you, too, Your Lordship. You seem to be recovering from your injuries."

"Well, I'll need my cane for a while. They got me right above the knee. Besides that I'm fine. I asked you to come here so that you could meet Alexander. Alexander, say hello to the Bishop."

Alexander, who was in the corner stacking blocks, glanced at the Bishop. "Hi," he said.

"Alexander's mother died in childbirth, and his father passed away just yesterday. We thought that you might be able to find a family that would be willing to take him in. A loyal family."

"Just yesterday? I understand," said the Bishop. "I take it that you'd like this to be quiet. No records."

"That's right. No records. We're willing to pay the family a stipend as long as they take good care of him, but they should never know we were involved. He's innocent. He shouldn't suffer."

"Of course." The Bishop pursed his lips for a moment. "I'll need a few days to find a suitable family."

"There's no rush. We'll keep him here in the meantime."

 

While Anna and Kristoff were eating breakfast the next morning, a lieutenant poked his head into the room. "Ma'am, Sir?" he asked. "Pardon the interruption, but I need your assistance. It's the swan knight. He won't listen to me."

"I'll take care of it," said Kristoff, his mouth still full. He wiped his mouth with his napkin and grabbed his cane. 

The lieutenant led Kristoff to the courtyard. Six soldiers stood in a line, holding swords and facing the knight. The knight had his sword raised and was holding it two-handed with the hilt at his shoulder. As Kristoff approached, the knight slowly swung the blade high across his body, stopping it when it was straight in front of him. "This is a 'middle hew'," he lectured. "The blade curves from side to front, high to low, ending at your opponent's most vulnerable point, his head." He returned the blade to its starting position and made a second slow swing. "Don't get lazy and let the blade swing itself. Pull the blade into the position you want it to be in or else your opponent will be able to knock it away. Try it yourselves."

Kristoff waited until the knight had put his sword down before getting close. "What are you doing?" he asked.

"I found swords in the armory, but it seems that none of your men know how to use them. Being untrained is more dangerous than having no sword at all." As one of the soldiers curved his sword over his head, the knight stopped him. "This isn't an overhead hew like before. Most of the blade movement is in front of you." He pulled the sword to the side and, guiding the soldier's arm, arced it across the soldier's body. "See? Try that yourself." The soldier swung his sword to the side this time. "Good." The knight moved on to the next soldier.

"Okay, that's enough," called Kristoff. "Back to your posts." The men looked to the knight, and then back to Kristoff. "Get going," Kristoff said.

"These men need training," interrupted the knight. "All the men do. I'm starting small. We can get them all arms and armor, and I can expand the classes to more men."

"No, we're not doing that. No way, not at all." Kristoff turned to the soldiers and folded his arms. "We're done here."

"The kingdom is under attack! How can we defend it with untrained men?"

"You're the queen's--what did you call yourself? Vassal? I'm her representative, and I'm telling you to stop. This is over." To the soldiers, he said, "Anyone still here in thirty seconds gets latrine duty. Lieutenant, that includes you too. I'll talk to you later. All of you, I'm counting. One. Two. Three." The soldiers emptied the courtyard in moments.

The knight sheathed his sword and kicked a rock on the ground. "I don't understand your kingdom. Not at all."

"We can take care of ourselves. We don't need your help."

"You needed my help two days ago. Why are you so confident now?"

"That situation is over now. Since you bring it up, we should discuss payment. Would a thousand coins be enough?"

"I don't want money."

"Eleven hundred?"

"Are you trying to insult me?"

"Why are you here? And don't tell me you were sent."

"Then I have nothing to say that you want to hear."

Kristoff glared at the knight. "If you keep causing trouble like you did just now, I'll have you thrown out, and I don't care what Elsa will say to me." He limped back to breakfast.


	6. Chapter 6

Anna and Kristoff didn't want Elsa and the knight to see each other, but she became insistent. "I want to see him," she told them that morning. "I know you're keeping him away from me, but I've had enough. Bring him to me or I'm going to get up and look for him myself."

Anna and Kristoff decided that it was inevitable, so they had the knight summoned. They stayed in the room. It would be better for them to chaperone the event, they thought, than to leave Elsa and the knight alone.

When the knight entered, Elsa beamed with joy. He was as handsome as she had remembered him. He was tall and muscular, and his hair was as thick and blond as hers was. His poise projected a quiet confidence in his authority. "Hi," she managed.

"My lady," the knight said, dropping to one knee. "Are you feeling better?"

Elsa started to reply, but her tongue got stuck in her mouth, and she coughed instead. "Yeah," she croaked.

"How may I serve you, my lady?" the knight asked.

"Sit here with me and talk," Elsa said. "I want to get to know you better."

"As you wish, my lady." The knight rose and sat on the edge of the bed.

"Call me Elsa," she said. She took his right hand in both her hands and stroked its rough calluses. "I missed you," she said.

"I'll be here as long as you want."

"I used to not even know that I missed you. I don't know how I made it all those years. Did you ever know that this would happen?"

"No, not until I had my dream."

"Kristoff told me about your dream. He and Anna don't believe me when I tell them the dreams were from God."

"I was told you didn't believe," the knight said. "I thought I would have to convert you."

"No, He did that already when He gave me my dream. I never believed in Him before. Now I can feel His presence watching over me. I think I'd feel isolated without Him."

The knight nodded. "My kingdom is so isolated that few even know we exist. Without Him, we wouldn't survive."

"Why are you so isolated? Don't you have neighbors?"

"It's hard to explain. My kingdom is very difficult to reach."

"You told Anna that you sailed here, so you must have a seaport or a river."

"A river. Even so, we are hard to reach. I can't recall the last time we had a visitor. Departures like my own aren't as common as they used to be, either."

"I'd like to visit some day."

"I'd like that, too, but if you were able to visit, you wouldn't want to leave. And I know you wouldn't neglect your responsibilities here."

"No, if it's like that, then I couldn't. Maybe your family could visit?"

"No, that's not possible either."

"So you're alone for as long as you're here."

"Alone except for you."

"Would you like me to send you back?"

The knight sighed, then shook his head. "I miss them, but I have you now." He clasped her hands in his. "You bring me more joy than I can put into words."

Anna and Kristoff looked at each other. Kristoff leaned over and whispered, "This is sickening."

Anna whispered back, "I'm jealous. How does he get her to act like this?"

"Remember, she's just grateful. It'll wear off."

 

Kristoff and Anna managed to convince Elsa that she needed rest and that she shouldn't push herself to spend more time with the knight. Nevertheless, Elsa and the knight agreed to meet again that evening to worship together. Afterwards, Anna said to Kristoff, "If all that comes out of this is that Elsa becomes religious, then I can put up with that. I'll stay with them this afternoon. You don't have to come."

"Suits me," Kristoff said, though he had a nagging feeling that he should be there.

When the knight arrived, he was carrying a prayer book and a Bible from the chapel. "I didn't see a Book of Hours, but I thought these might be useful," he said. "The books are very strange. The copyist is exceptional, but there aren't any illuminations."

"Copyist?" asked Elsa. "These are printed."

"I don't understand. How do you make a book without a copyist?"

"They're printed. On presses."

"What?"

"You don't know what a printing press is?"

"No."

"Your kingdom must be very remote." Elsa considered trying to explain before saying, "Another time. Where do we start?"

The knight opened the prayer book. "There should be a Vespers service."

"Hmm. Preface. Calendar. Table of Lessons. The Divine Service. Morning Service. Evening Service?"

"No Vespers?"

"Hmm. Doesn't seem to be."

"Evening Service must mean Vespers, then."

Elsa flipped to the Evening Service. "O God, make haste to help me," she read.

"It's not in Latin? Deus in adiutorium meum intende?"

"Only papists use Latin. We're Lutheran."

"What is 'Lutheran'?"

"Martin Luther?"

"Who?"

"You've never heard of Martin Luther?"

"No. Was he a saint?"

Elsa stifled a laugh and said, "Well, that's another long explanation. How about we continue? What do the italics mean?" asked Elsa.

"I don't know."

"Anna, do you know?"

Anna looked up. She had been contemplating the floor and trying to ignore the awkward service Elsa and the knight were having. "Huh?" she asked.

"Do you know why some of the text is in italics?"

"It's the response. The leader reads the regular text and the congregation reads the response."

"Who's the leader?"

"The pastor. Or whoever, if there's no pastor."

"I'll respond," said the knight. "O Lord, make haste to help me."

Together, they chanted, "Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen."

After consulting the table at the front of the book, they found that the appointed psalm was number 130. Elsa began, "Out of the depths I have called unto Thee, O Lord." Thoughts of her captivity in the ice well came unbidden into her mind.

"Out of the depths I have called unto Thee, O Lord," repeated the knight.

"Lord, hear my voice. Let Thine ears consider the voice of my complaint. If Thou, Lord, recorded our sins, O Lord, who could stand?" Elsa reached for the knight's hand and held it tight. "But there is mercy with Thee; therefore Thou shalt be feared."

"Out of the depths I have called unto Thee, O Lord."

Elsa paused, and when she resumed, her voice trembled. "I look for the Lord; my soul waits for Him. In His word is my trust. My soul waits for the Lord more than watchmen wait for the morning, indeed, for the morning."

"Out of the depths I have called unto Thee, O Lord."

Elsa laid her head on the knight's shoulder. "O Israel, trust in the Lord, for with the Lord there is mercy and abundant redemption. And He shall redeem Israel from all their sins."

"Out of the depths I have called unto Thee, O Lord."

Together they recited, "Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen." The knight crossed himself, and Elsa imitated him. They embraced each other in a silent prayer of thanksgiving and praise.

As their prayers continued, Anna felt resentment flowing from her heart. She had once felt peace from performing these same rituals, but in the end they had accomplished nothing. They hadn't brought her parents back, and they hadn't brought Elsa out of her room. God hadn't noticed Anna, not even a little. Now either Elsa was deluded or He was providing her with everything she wanted. It wasn't fair.

When Anna's attention returned to the service, Elsa and the knight had reached the Lord's Prayer. "And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever and ever. Amen," they recited.

"The Lord be with you," read Elsa.

"And with your spirit," read the knight.

"Let us pray." Elsa flipped to the Collect for the Day. "Almighty God, who gives us grace and who promises to be present whenever two or three are gathered together in Thy Name, in Thee the darkness shines as bright as the day. By Thy great mercy defend us from all perils and dangers of this night. Let Thy servants rest in the peace of forgiveness, through the grace of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen."

"Amen," said the knight.

Elsa flipped back to the Evening Service. "Let us praise the Lord."

"Thanks be to God."

Elsa shut the prayer book and put it on her nightstand. She leaned back on her bed and took the knight's hand. "That felt good," she said. She yawned.

"Tired?" the knight asked.

Elsa nodded. "Can we do this again tomorrow morning?"

"Of course."

"Kiss me good night?"

Anna jumped to her feet and yelled, "Whoa whoa whoa! No kissing! That's going too far!"

"Come on, Anna. It's just a kiss."

"No way." Anna moved between Elsa and the knight and pushed them apart. "We have standards to uphold. No kissing!"

The knight said to Elsa, "We can be patient, can't we?"

"Well, alright. A little patient." Elsa smiled. "Good night, handsome prince."

The knight held her hand for a moment before rising to go. "Good night, beautiful maiden," the knight said. He left, lingering at the door a moment to give Elsa a last glance.

When the knight was gone, Elsa said, "You don't have to be so protective. We know what we're doing."

"I hope so. God never seemed to be on my side. I hope it works out better for you, sis." Anna gave Elsa a hug.

"I love you too," said Elsa.

 

The next day, Anna sat in the corner while Elsa and the knight performed the Morning Prayer service. Later, she sat through Evening Prayer again. At bedtime, she said to Kristoff, "It feels awkward just sitting there and not participating."

"I'll watch them tomorrow," Kristoff said.

When morning came, Kristoff took Anna's place in Elsa's room. The knight offered to let Kristoff join them, but he refused, saying, "It's not for me."

"It's for everyone," said the knight.

"I know that you mean well, but it's not for me. At all."

 

Later that morning, the Bishop visited Kristoff. They met in the nursery again. "I've found a suitable family," said the Bishop. "They want children but have never had any. The man is a tradesman, and they have a good reputation."

"Who are they? No, wait, I don't want to know. How soon can they take him?"

"They don't have clothes or toys for him yet. They said they have a cot he can use until they get him a bed."

"He has his own clothes and toys. I'd like him to leave soon."

The bishop watched Alexander fly a reindeer into a tower of blocks. "They wanted to know who he was. I told them that I didn't know any details."

"I don't care what they think as long as they don't know who he really is. Can they take him tomorrow morning?"

"Yes, I think so."

"Good. I'll have him sent to you."

 

When Doctor Jonsson visited in the afternoon, he pronounced Elsa fit to walk. "Your progress has been amazing," he said. "When I first saw you I thought that gangrene was setting in. I expected that if you survived at all, you'd lose at least one limb, maybe two. What's happened instead is a miracle."

For evening prayers, the knight helped Elsa to the chapel. The stab wounds in her legs made her steps slow and awkward. The knight supported her with his arm as much as he could, but if she leaned on him too much the wounds in her arms hurt. Walking was a delicate combination of balance and tenacity. Returning to Elsa's room afterwards required the same care.

The next morning, as Kristoff followed Elsa and the knight to the chapel, Kristoff realized that he already hated Elsa's routine of prayer. It was pointless to recite prayers and psalms and Bible readings, and he resented being forced to be a part of it.

After Elsa was back in her room and the knight had left, Kristoff went to Alexander's room. Ida was packing Alexander's belongings into a trunk.

"Where are we going?" Alexander asked.

"To see the Bishop," said Ida.

"How are we going to get there?"

"We're going in a carriage."

"Is Papa going to be there?"

"No, he's not."

"I miss Papa."

"I'm sure that Papa misses you, too. Now hand me your reindeer so that I can put it away."

Alexander shook his head and clutched the toy reindeer. "I want Sven," he said.

Kristoff asked, "Is his reindeer named Sven now?"

"Since yesterday," said Ida. "I took him to see the real Sven again and he started calling his own reindeer Sven."

"Well, Sven is a good name for a reindeer." Kristoff knelt down to Alexander's level. "Alexander, it's time to go. You're going to leave the castle now."

"I want to keep Sven."

"Okay, you can keep Sven. You have to hold on to him tight. Do you think you can do that?" Alexander nodded. "Good bye, Alexander."

"Am I going to come back here?" Alexander asked.

"No, you're not."

"Am I going to see the pretty lady?"

"Who's that?" asked Kristoff. Alexander put his hand in his mouth and sucked his fingers. "Alexander, who's the pretty lady?"

"I like her hair."

"What's her hair like?"

"Brown."

"Does she have a name?" Alexander nodded and put his fingers back into his mouth. "What's her name?"

"Princess Anna," Alexander mumbled through his fingers.

"Her name is Princess Anna?" Alexander nodded again.

"That's so cute," said Ida.

"Or scary." Kristoff stood. "Ida, there should be a carriage coming soon. Have the trunk loaded. Alexander and I are going to find the pretty lady."

Anna was in the nursery changing Emma's diaper. Kristoff said, "Alexander wants to say good bye to you. He calls you the pretty lady."

"That's disturbing," Anna said. "Why are you indulging him?"

"Because he doesn't deserve to be unhappy. Just say goodbye and he'll be gone for good."

"Fine." Anna left Emma lying on the changing table for a moment and knelt down. "Come here," she said to Alexander. He ran up to her and hugged her. "Good bye, Alexander."

"You're, you're, you're," Alexander said.

"What do you think I am?"

"A good mama." Alexander buried his face in her shoulder.

"Thank you, Alexander. That's very sweet." Anna patted him on the back. "It's time to go now. Good bye Alexander."

"Good bye Princess Anna," he said, tightening his hug. The toy reindeer's antlers dug into Anna's back.

When Alexander let go, Kristoff took his hand. "Come along now. It's time for you to go."

 

Early that afternoon, a messenger arrived with a letter for Elsa. After she had read it, she called Anna, Kristoff, and the knight into her bedroom.

"Borgstrom has surrendered," Elsa said.

"Thank God," said Anna. Kristoff, who was holding Emma, gave Anna a quizzical look.

Elsa continued, "He accepts permanent exile. His men have accepted my offer of amnesty. The war is over."

A sigh of relief breathed through the room. "Were there any casualties?" asked Kristoff.

"The letter says there was no major battle. When the army heard that I had been taken captive, they marched. They were preparing to fight when Telramund's head showed up. They allowed Borgstrom a day to consider his options, and he gave up."

"It's really over?" said Anna.

"Seems like it. Everyone gets to go home. Except Borgstrom, of course."

"Are you sure there won't be holdouts? Or bandits?" asked Kristoff.

"The army can handle them. Most of the supporters were with Borgstrom's army."

"I feel like we should celebrate," said Anna.

Elsa said, "Me too. But how?"

"To start, prayer," suggested the knight. Kristoff groaned.

"I like that idea," said Elsa. She reached for her prayer book. "I'm still not good at this. There must be a prayer of thanks somewhere in here."

Anna said to Kristoff, "I'll stay here. You can take a break."

"Wait," said Elsa. "You don't like it?"

"I don't know how you can stand it," said Kristoff. "It's so boring."

Elsa put the prayer book down. "I guess I had hoped you were getting used to it. I'm enjoying it."

"For how long? Another week? A month? When will you be back to normal?"

"This is my new normal."

"It's not normal!" Kristoff shouted. The silence after his outburst made him feel small. In a weak voice, he repeated, "It's not normal." He looked around. Everyone was staring at him.

Kristoff got up and, forgetting his cane, began to walk to the door. As he put his full weight on his injured leg, it gave way, and he began to fall. The knight jumped up and caught him. "Are you okay?" the knight asked. Kristoff nodded. "I'll get your cane."

"I don't need your help." Kristoff limped the two steps to his cane and picked it up.

Anna asked, "Kristoff? What's wrong?"

"Nothing. I'm fine. I just want to be alone," Kristoff said as he left.

Anna, cradling Emma in her arms, got up to follow him. She stopped at the door and turned back to Elsa and the knight. "No funny business while I'm gone," she warned.

"On my honor," said the knight.

 

Kristoff hadn't made it very far down the hall before Anna caught up to him. Anna asked, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing. Everything. I don't want to talk about it."

Emma began crying. "I just fed you," Anna complained. She checked Emma's diaper. "I never knew one baby could soil so many diapers," she said.

"I'll take care of her," said Kristoff.

"Are you sure?"

"It'll give me time to calm down. Go keep them company."

Anna pursed her lips. Then she handed over Emma and gave Kristoff a peck on the cheek. "I love you," she said.

 

After Elsa and the knight had finished praying and the knight had left, Anna went searching for Kristoff. He wasn't in their bedroom, nor was he in the nursery, the library, the sitting room, the dining room, the ballroom, or the stable. 

When Anna found Kristoff, he was in the chapel, sitting in a pew and holding a sleeping Emma in his arms. Anna sat next to him. "How are you feeling?" she asked.

Kristoff hesitated. "Um," he began, but then he stopped. "I'm just," he began again. He sighed. "I have something to admit to you. I told you that I didn't find my father. Actually I did."

"That's wonderful. Isn't it?"

"My father was a pastor. He was married and had two children, a boy and a girl, both at least a decade older than me. My mother was a young widow in his congregation. Her husband had died in an accident, leaving her alone with her young son, my half-brother. I don't know how she got involved with my father, but she got pregnant. She kept my father's part in it secret. I don't know why. She died after giving birth to me. Before she died, she told the midwife who my father was. The midwife tried to give me to him. He refused to take me, so my brother and I were sent to the orphanage."

"The one you've always told me about."

"The one I hated. Yeah. My brother and I were both sent there. He got sick and died a few years later. I don't remember him at all. I ran away when I was five, and you know the rest."

"How did you find all of this out?"

"I tried to find the orphanage's records, but they had been lost in a fire. Asking around I found out who was working as a midwife when I was born. I found the midwife who delivered me, and she remembered me. She said she remembered me because of how my father had treated me, and she warned me that he might not want to speak to me. I went to him anyway."

Kristoff's voice shook as he continued. "When he found out who I was, he was furious. He told me that he hated me. That I was a mistake, the devil's work, and the product of sin. That he was going to pray that he never saw nor heard me again. I tried to ask him about my mother and about my family, but he wouldn't talk to me. He kept saying that he wished I had never been born. In the end he told me to get out, and if I ever contacted him again he would find a way to ruin me. So I left. I didn't try to contact my half-siblings. I don't think they know I exist."

Anna put her arm around Kristoff's shoulder. Gritting his teeth, Kristoff said, "I'm never going to leave you. I'm never going to abandon Emma. Never! I hate him. I'm not going to be like him."

Anna put her other arm around Kristoff, hugging him and Emma. "It's okay. You're okay. You're not like him. Calm down."

Kristoff's chest heaved as he struggled to contain his quiet rage. He looked down at Emma, who was sleeping in his arms. He let out a deep sigh. "Cutie, I love you," he said, kissing her on her forehead. "And I love you too," he said to Anna, kissing her cheek.

Anna asked, "Why is this coming back now?"

"Because he was a pastor. Still is. I don't think his congregation knows, and that's why he was so scared when I found him. As long as I'm not around, he can pretend that he's a holy man, a loyal husband and father. I look at religion now, and I see nothing but hypocrites. Hypocrites like my father. When Tin Can Man says he's religious, I wonder what his real motives are. Greed? Lust? Whatever they are I don't like them."

"You're being unfair. He did save us."

"I know. But now Elsa's becoming religious, and I'm wondering how long it will be before she becomes a hypocrite, too. How long before she tells us that we need to go to church? Before we have to start praying with her? Before she tells us that we're going to Hell if we don't?"

"She'd never do that. I think. It's worried me, too." They sat in silence, pondering, with Anna leaning on Kristoff's shoulder. Anna continued, "I had given up on religion. Now I wonder if I was doing it wrong. Maybe I was never supposed to get my parents back or get Elsa to come out of her room. Elsa isn't asking God for anything. She just seems happy to participate."

"What's the point if you're not getting anything out of it?"

"You're supposed to want eternal salvation. I only cared about salvation because it meant that I'd get to see Mama and Papa again."

"A convenient fantasy. Offer people something they want and tell them that they can't have it until they're not around to collect."

"Kristoff," said Anna, "what if it's true? How do you explain the knight showing up when he did?"

"It can't be true. It's luck, or scheming, or something like that."

"I wish there were a way to know."

"Wait," said Kristoff. "I think I know what to do."

 

The next morning, Kristoff rose early and went down to the stable. The knight was already there. He was checking the tack of the horse the stablehands had prepared for him. Sven brayed when he saw Kristoff. "I know, you're getting too old to be ridden. But you like going outside, don't you? What if I gave you a carrot?" Kristoff pulled out a carrot, and Sven and Kristoff each took a bite.

As they rode out of the castle, the knight said, "You invited me on a ride, but you didn't tell me where we were going."

"There are some friends of mine you should meet," Kristoff said. "I want to know what they think of you."

"You're still reserving judgment."

"Wouldn't you, if a strange man said that he intended to marry your sister-in-law?"

"I would. This is all quite strange for me, too. Your land, your customs, your culture, none of it is the same as mine."

"But you won't say where you're from."

"I can't." The knight sighed. "Everything would make sense if I could tell you, but I can't."

"Well, we're going to make sense of it now."

"How so? Your friends?"

"Exactly."

 

That evening, after a full day of riding, they stopped in a rocky valley covered in moss. A few scraggly trees struggled to stay upright here and there. Warm steam blew through vents in the valley's stone floor.

"Here we are," said Kristoff. They stopped and dismounted.

"I thought we were going to meet your friends," the knight said.

Kristoff smirked. "Just you wait. Follow me." As he and the knight walked through the valley, he began addressing the rocks. "Good to see you. How've you been? You're looking great. What are your kids up to these days?"

The knight had suspected that Kristoff's purpose in inviting him on this ride was to put him to some test, and now he wondered whether this was it. Either Kristoff was putting on a show or he was crazy. Whichever it was, the knight didn't want to show a reaction.

Kristoff said, "Okay guys, enough. You can come out now."

The rocks shook and rattled against the valley floor. As they rolled towards Kristoff and the knight, the knight took a step back and tripped, falling to the ground. There was a rock that hadn't been there moments ago. "What's going on?" asked the knight.

"Meet my family!" said Kristoff.

The rocks popped open to reveal trolls. A troll shouted, "Kristoff's home!" and the rest of the trolls cheered.

"Magical creatures," marveled the knight, who was still on the ground.

"Hey there!" Kristoff said as a young troll hopped into his arms. "You've gotten big!"

A female troll said, "Kristoff! Let me wash your clothes for you. Come on, off with them."

"No no no, my clothes are staying on," said Kristoff, grabbing the waistline of his pants. "Mama, I wanted you to meet someone."

The troll turned to the knight and blinked twice. "He's brought a friend!" she shouted.

"He's brought a friend!" the trolls echoed.

The troll shook the knight's hand. "Hi, I'm Bulda. Kristoff's never had a human friend before," she said. "What's your name? Where are you from? How'd you meet our Kristoff?"

Kristoff said, "Don't smother him." Using his cane for support, he sat down on the valley floor. "Is Grand Pabbie around?"

Grand Pabbie rolled up to Kristoff and the knight. "Kristoff," he asked, "who is this?"

"I wanted to ask you that," said Kristoff. "I wanted him to tell you his story, as much of it as he tells anyone."

"Really?" Grand Pabbie looked the knight up and down. "It's not necessary. He won't tell, anyway."

"Hold on, you know him? Who is he?"

Grand Pabbie said, "Kristoff, there is something beyond ordinary magic here. Something that can't be put into words." Turning to the knight, he said, "It's been a long time since I met someone like you. I know who sent you, but why?"

The knight said, "I was sent to rescue the queen."

Grand Pabbie raised his eyebrows. "We had heard that the queen had been rescued by a mysterious stranger. But if that were all you had been sent here for, you would have left already. What else are you here for?"

"If I understand my dream, to marry her."

Grand Pabbie chuckled. "If you understand your dream. My boy, you don't have to pretend around me. Of course you understood that dream. Congratulations. When's the wedding?"

"Wait!" said Kristoff. "Who is he? What's going on?"

Grand Pabbie shook his head. "I don't know his name. But I know where he's from, and that must remain a secret. You'd have to leave before the next sunset, am I right?"

"Yes," said the knight. "Please don't make me do that."

"I won't. Your presence here is an unexpected blessing. Kristoff, this must be hard for you, but you should trust this man. You've already found true love. Now Elsa will, too."

 

Later that evening, Kristoff sat alone on the valley floor and picked at the moss. A few paces away, the knight was playing with the young trolls. Bulda rolled up to him. "Kristoff? What's wrong?"

"I came here because I thought Grand Pabbie would tell me that he was making it all up."

"You wanted him to tell you that you were right."

"Yeah."

"You know that if you were, he'd tell you."

"Yeah." Kristoff plucked another piece of moss from the valley floor.

"So you were wrong. Own up to it. Stop acting like a baby about it."

"He's changing everything. Elsa's becoming religious. I don't like it."

"Because of your father. Your human father."

"Yeah."

"Why are you letting him control your life?"

"He's not controlling anything."

"You just said you don't like this man because of your father. Come on."

"Alright. So he is. I still don't like this guy."

Kristoff and Bulda watched the knight play catch with the young trolls. He had a crowd of young trolls around him, and he was picking them up and heaving them at an adult troll standing a few yards away. The adult caught the children, and the children ran back to the knight for another toss.

Bulda waited. She knew Kristoff could be as hard-headed as any troll. The best way to soften him was to give him time.

After a few minutes of silence, Sven wandered over. He nudged Kristoff with his muzzle. "Not you too," said Kristoff. Sven snorted and pushed him harder.

"That's enough," Bulda said. "Let him be, Sven." Sven huffed and walked away.

Kristoff said, "I still don't want to be friends with him."

"You don't have to be," said Bulda.

They sat in silence for a while. When Kristoff realized that the crowd of children around the knight was growing, he stood up. "You're doing it wrong," he said to the knight. "You're using your arms. It's all in the legs." He picked up one of the children and heaved him into the waiting arms of an adult troll. "See? Try it."

The knight squatted down and hefted one of the children, tossing her high into the air. "Oh, of course. This is much easier. Thanks."

"You're welcome."

From where she sat a few paces away, Bulda smiled. Kristoff was still such a cutie.

 

The next day, after a long ride back, Kristoff found Anna in the nursery. He flopped onto the couch. "I don't know what's going on," he said.

Anna sat in the rocking chair feeding Emma. "What happened?"

"Grand Pabbie liked him. And once he liked him, they all liked him."

"Really? Did he say who he is?"

"No, Grand Pabbie knew but wasn't telling. He didn't want him to leave."

"So it's real. He's special somehow."

"Yeah."

Emma was fussing, so Anna raised her upright and patted her back, trying to burp her. "I've been feeling like I'm losing Elsa no matter what I do. But if Grand Pabbie says he's okay, maybe I'm wrong. Maybe I'm the problem."

"Don't say that."

"Last night, while I was talking with Elsa, I realized that I want her all to myself. It doesn't bother me if she's religious. It bothers me that I have to share her. I was so happy that he wasn't there, and it made me feel selfish." Emma burped. Anna switched breasts and continued nursing her.

Kristoff nodded. "Bulda pointed out that I was comparing him to my father. Even if I don't like him, I should at least judge him on his own merits."

Anna rocked and fed Emma while looking out the window at the clouds in the sky. "I'm going to apologize," she said.

"Now?"

"When I'm done feeding Emma."

"I'll come with you."

Kristoff watched Emma nursing at Anna's breast. "Don't stare," she said. "It makes me feel indecent."

"Sorry. I'm just thinking that I never did anything to deserve a family like the one I have, and somehow I got it anyway." He looked out the window. "What do you think will happen to Alexander?"

"He reminded me of his father. I guess he could turn out different, though."

"I hope he does. I want him to."

When Emma was done nursing, and when she had been burped, Anna and Kristoff went looking for the knight. They found him in the chapel. "Come with me," said Anna.

The knight followed her. "What's going on?" he asked.

"Just follow."

Anna led Kristoff and the knight to Elsa's room. As they entered, Elsa put aside a book. "Hi," she said. "What's this?"

Anna closed her eyes for a moment before beginning. "I was wrong. I love you, but I can't have you all to myself. I should let you make your own decisions." Turning to the knight, she said, "Go ahead. Kiss her."

"Excuse me, I must have heard you wrong," said the knight.

"Kiss her. On her lips."

"Er," said the knight. He was blushing. "Kristoff? What do you think?"

Kristoff said, "I've been too suspicious of you. I still don't know you very well, and I still don't trust you, but you don't deserve the treatment I've given you."

Elsa interrupted, "Speaking of getting to know him, I was thinking that he needs a name. We can't keep saying, 'you', or 'him', or 'the swan knight.' We can't know your real name, but we can give you a new one." Gesturing at the book beside her, she said, "It says here that a male swan is called a cob. How would you like to be called Cob?"

"I like my name," the knight protested. "But I see your point. I guess that would be okay. Yeah. It sounds pretty good."

"Great. Pleased to meet you, Cob. Now kiss me."

"Are you sure? We don't have to yet."

"Why don't you want to kiss me?"

"I don't want to do anything inappropriate. You're my liege."

"Why did you come here?"

"Because I was told to in a dream."

"Do you love me?"

"That's not the point. God told me to do this."

"Why do you think he did that? Tell me you love me or I'll send you away."

Cob looked first at Anna, who was rocking Emma, and then at Kristoff, who folded his arms. With a sigh, he sat down on the edge of the bed and took Elsa's hands in his. "Everything here is so strange. I thought when I left home that I would visit a kingdom like my own. Arendelle is nothing like I expected. Nor are you are like any woman I've ever met. I've never felt this way before. I love you, Elsa. Will you marry me?"

"Yes!" Elsa said. "Now kiss me."

"Uh," Cob said, looking over at Anna and Kristoff.

"Go on, get to it," said Anna. "And make it hot."

Elsa and Cob were both blushing. Gazing into her eyes, he leaned forward, put his hands around her head, and touched his forehead to hers. They were still for a while. "Are you ready?" he asked.

Elsa murmured, "Yes." They closed their eyes, and Cob pulled her mouth to his. The sensation was warm, soft, and thrilling. She pushed her lips against his, and he pushed back. They paused to breathe, panting, and with a violent rush came together again.

When Elsa and Cob separated, they were both grinning. "It feels even better than I thought it would," she said.

"Can we do it again?" Cob asked.

"As much as you like." Elsa and Cob kissed again. When they had finished their third kiss, Elsa giggled. "I could do this for hours." She ran her fingers through his hair. "My husband. I never thought I'd say those words. My husband."


	7. Chapter 7

One Sunday morning, Elsa lay in bed feeling old. She looked at her braid again. Most of her hairs were still blond, but even her vanity couldn't deny that she had gray ones. She looked to her right, where Cob lay sleeping facing her. Here and there, he had gray hairs, too. It felt like they had been married a long time. She counted. Twelve years? No, it was closer to thirteen now.

Elsa stretched her legs out under the sheets. She thanked God again for sending Cob to her. Being around him lightened her heart and made her happy. Sometimes, like now, the mere act of watching him would make her feel a glow inside. Besides which, he was a sharp and insightful leader, and his advice had helped Arendelle many times. She wondered again about the kingdom that was waiting for him to return. She hoped that his sister was as talented as he was. She didn't want him to go.

Elsa felt a sudden urge to be near Cob. It had been a long time since she had felt this way, but now the impulse was overwhelming, as if God Himself was commanding her. Before she realized what she was doing, she edged closer to him and kissed his forehead.

"Is it time to leave for the cathedral yet?" Cob whispered.

"No. I have something to do until then," Elsa said.

"Hmm?"

Elsa snuggled up to him and put her arm around him. The sensation of his body next to hers was thrilling. "Wanna guess?"

Cob smiled. "Do I have to, or can we skip that part?"

 

A few months later, Elsa realized that she was pregnant again. "I thought I was too old for this," she said to Cob. "If I had had a choice, I don't know that I would have done it again. But it's too late now."

"He'll be a joy, I'm sure."

"Or a little terror like Jakob was." Elsa and Cob had had five children, all boys. Jakob, who was the third, was nine years old now.

"The older children can help. Maria would love to take care of a baby." Maria, eleven years old, was the second of Anna and Kristoff's seven daughters.

"She thinks she would. We'll see. I expect that Ida will do most of the work as always."

 

Margrete claimed that she was too old to deliver babies. She had made the same claim three years ago when Anna had been pregnant with Helena. Like three years ago, Margrete said that she would "help out just until someone competent comes along," which meant that she would be there until the baby was delivered.

Elsa got big, very big. She said to Margrete, "I've never had a baby like this one before. He's huge."

"Hmm," said Margrete as she prodded Elsa. "I don't think so. Seems like normal size."

"It can't be. I feel like a sinking ship."

"No, normal size. The difference is, there's two of them."

 

Elsa went into labor on the evening of the winter solstice. "You get to share a birthday," said Cob when Elsa started labor. "Concentrate on that."

"Not helping," Elsa said, gritting her teeth.

Elsa's sixth labor was, compared to her others, easy. The first child arrived within hours. For their sixth boy, Elsa and Cob had chosen the name Godfrey. A few minutes later, at the precise moment of the solstice, the second child arrived. "A daughter!" Margrete exclaimed.

"A daughter?" asked Elsa.

"Here you go. See for yourself."

"A daughter," repeated Elsa, shocked, as she held the crying girl.

When Cob was invited back into the room, he exclaimed, "A son and a daughter!"

"Look at them," said Elsa, who was holding their new son and daughter in her arms.

Cob sat down next to Elsa and admired them. He said, "I'm amazed. We didn't even discuss names for a daughter."

"How about Astrid?"

"She doesn't look like an Astrid."

"Deborah?"

"Doesn't sound good. What about Christina?"

"Too blatant."

"Helga?"

"Too obscure. Beatrice?"

"Beatrice. I like it. How about it, Beatrice? Do you like your name?" Beatrice coughed and looked around. "I think that's a yes. Can I hold her?" asked Cob.

"Sure." Elsa passed Beatrice into Cob's arms.

"My goodness, she's cold," Cob said. "Do we have more blankets?" Margrete gave Cob another blanket and helped him wrap Beatrice in it. "There you go. This'll warm you up."

 

No matter how many blankets Beatrice wore, however, there were times when she felt cold to the touch. But she never seemed to be bothered by it, and it was almost a year before the reason why became clear. Elsa was in her study, reading a report from the ambassador to the Southern Isles, when she heard screaming. She peeked into the hall. "Help! Help, somebody help!" she heard.

Elsa followed the screaming to Godfrey and Beatrice's room. Ida had set up a small baby bath for the two of them. Now she was clutching Godfrey and trembling, and there was a crowd of family and servants around the bath. "What's going on?" Elsa asked.

Ida whispered, "Your daughter. Look."

The crowd stared at Elsa and parted so that she could get through. Elsa looked into the tub. Beatrice sat in the middle of it, smiling and babbling. She was surrounded by ice.

"How did it happen?" asked Elsa.

"I don't know, Ma'am," said Ida. "The water was hot when I put the two of them in. You know how they like to stay together. I was washing Godfrey when the water turned to ice."

Elsa picked up Beatrice. Beatrice giggled. "Did you do that, Beatrice?" asked Elsa. "Ida, is there more water around?"

"Yes, Ma'am, in the bucket."

Elsa lowered Beatrice into the bucket. "Beatrice, can you do what Mama thinks you can?"

Beatrice looked at the water, giggled, and turned it to ice. "Eeeeetwp!" she exclaimed.

"I see. Eeetwp indeed. Don't think that this will get you out of taking baths."

 

Cob and Elsa discussed the situation in Elsa's study. "You saw her turn the water to ice?" asked Cob.

"Yeah," said Elsa. "Mama once told me that I did that, too. I thought it was a game."

"Is she as powerful as you? Or can you tell?"

Elsa shrugged. "I can't tell. We should know in a few years. Not that I want to wait that long." She sighed. "I wish she were normal. Magic has made my life harder, not easier."

"It's a gift from God."

"I wish I understood why He'd given it to me, then. I kind of resent it. Sometimes people expect me to do things I can't do, like make their crops grow or heal their illness. When I don't do those things, they think it's spite, not that I never had that power in the first place. Plus, I've hurt people with it. I don't want Beatrice to go through that. Maybe there's some way we can suppress her powers."

"Her magic isn't going to go away. It would be better to prepare her to use it."

"You know, when I was a little girl, I used to pretend that my magic would go away some day. Then I could leave my room and play with Anna. Of course, it was never going to happen. But if we can make her closer to normal, she'll live an easier life."

"How's that different from, 'Conceal it, don't feel it, don't let it show'?"

"That was about hiding my powers. I don't want to isolate Beatrice. I want her not to be magical at all."

"Grand Pabbie would know. But even if it can be done, I'd rather she have her powers."

 

It was nearing winter now, and while it wasn't a busy time of year, there had been an early snow that muddied the roads and made traveling difficult. It was a week before Elsa could arrange to visit Grand Pabbie. When they had finished exchanging pleasantries, she got to the point. "Grand Pabbie, Beatrice seems to have the same magical powers that I do."

"Really? Here, show her to me." Elsa held out Beatrice, and Grand Pabbie placed his hand on her forehead. He nodded. "There is powerful magic within her, just like you."

"What can I do about it?"

"Nothing. You got along fine, didn't you?"

"Can you take her powers away?"

"Why would you want that?"

"So that she can be a normal girl. It was so hard for me. I don't want it to be like that for her."

"It can't be done. The magic is woven into her flesh. There's no way to take it out."

"Please! Isn't there anything?"

"No, there isn't. It would destroy her, the same as trying to take your powers away would destroy you."

"I see." Elsa hugged Beatrice close to her. "We'll keep you safe. You can control your powers."

"Your Majesty," said Grand Pabbie, "you're remembering all the pain that your powers have caused. What about the fun? Building snowmen with your sister, sledding in the ballroom, ice skating around the courtyard? Magic isn't always a burden."

"Not always, but too often. I don't want her to have that burden."

"There's no escaping it. Besides, everyone's life has troubles. Her magic may be one of her troubles. It may also be the solution."

 

Alexander sat in the shade across from the cathedral and hugged himself for warmth. He stretched his legs but kept his eyes on the cathedral entrance. He was trying not to be noticed.

It was always at the beginning of the month that the deacon visited his family. When Alexander was young, he had thought that the deacon visited everyone every month. The deacon had always asked Alexander how he was doing, whether he was treated well, whether he liked his parents, and so on. It had been years before he realized that his parents were getting paid to take care of him.

Learning that his parents were being paid had made Alexander angry. That was how he had learned that he was adopted, and it made him feel like he was a commodity, as if his father's business was dealing children, not tailoring. When he had confronted his parents, they had sworn that they loved him. They had said that they had wanted children but hadn't succeeded. The bishop had offered them a child. All they knew for sure were that his mother had died in childbirth and his father had died in the rebellion. Their best guess was that his father had been a soldier in the castle guard and that the monthly payments were his father's pension. His father admitted, though, that the clothes Alexander had come with had been too nice for an enlisted man's son. Perhaps his father had been an officer. "But it doesn't matter to us," his father had said with his perpetual smile, "we love you no matter where you came from. We don't care about the money. Raising you is its own reward."

Alexander thought his parents were wrong. A pension would have come from the government, not the church, even if it had been the church that had placed him with his parents. He had checked with the army pension office, and they had no record of a pension for him. He was sure that his benefactor was connected to the church somehow, and he wasn't sure that the story of his parents' death was true. He thought it was possible that he was the illegitimate son of a high-ranking church official, but he hadn't identified any likely candidates. His best guess was that the church was no more than a funnel. If his benefactor were a powerful noble, it would be no problem to deposit a little money with the church each month and have them deliver it.

That deposit was what Alexander was waiting for. It was the end of the month now, and if anyone was going to come by to deliver money, Alexander wanted to be there to observe. For the past few months, he had spent the end of every month watching the cathedral and cataloging the people who came and went. Not many people went to the cathedral except for worship services. The ones who went at other times were employees, like the sexton, or regulars, like the old lady who went every day, or pilgrims from the country, who always looked overwhelmed by the city. He was looking for someone who wasn't any of those.

Alexander watched a woman about thirty years old enter the cathedral. She had been there last month, too, and her face seemed familiar, as if he had seen her around the city somewhere. She wasn't a regular, and it wasn't time for services. Her clothes were practical, as if she were a working woman, but they were too fine for most people of her class to afford. Alexander surmised that she must be the servant of someone wealthy.

The woman left a few minutes later. It seemed too fast to Alexander. She wouldn't have had time to talk with anyone. Nor would she have had time for prayer unless it had taken her mere moments. Alexander decided that she might be who he was looking for.

Alexander shadowed the woman as she walked through the city. She didn't seem to be aware of him, and her route was straightforward. Alexander was so focused on her that when he rounded a corner and saw the bridge to the castle in front of him, he gasped. He covered his mouth and sidled into a shadow. The woman, who hadn't noticed him, greeted the guards as she entered the gates.

Alexander's head spun. If he was right, then his benefactor was someone in the royal household. He considered the possibilities. He wasn't the right age to be the son of Prince Cob, and besides, the prince wasn't the type of person to father an illegitimate son. But Baron Kristoff seemed like a plausible father. Alexander would have been born a little before the baron's marriage to Princess Anna. If the baron had had a lover before that, then Alexander might be his son.

Alexander knew that he was guessing. The woman could be someone else's servant. She could have some other business at the cathedral or the castle. He needed more information. He walked across the bridge to the castle gates. At the gate, a guard not much older than Alexander approached him and said, "Halt. State your business."

"Can you tell me who that woman was? The one who just went in?"

"What? Who's asking?"

"Uh, well," Alexander began. He felt embarrassed. "She dropped something?" he tried.

"What's really going on?"

"I want to talk to her."

"I suggest you leave," said the guard.

 

Alexander returned to the cathedral. He had never had a reason to visit the bishop's office before, but since he and his parents worshiped there every Sunday, he knew where it was. Alexander stood outside the open door, afraid to enter. Before long, the bishop looked up and noticed him. "Come in, Alexander," he said. Did the bishop know who Alexander was because he knew everyone, or because he was channeling money to Alexander's parents? "Sit down. How are you?"

"Your Grace, I, um, I don't know--" Alexander stopped himself and began afresh. "Who was that woman?"

"What woman?"

"There was a woman here. She came from the castle, and she was only here long enough to deliver something. Who was she?"

"I'm afraid I can't help you," said the bishop. "Is there anything else?"

"She might be connected to my father. Can you help me?"

"Persi's your father."

That was an odd statement, Alexander thought. It would have been irrelevant unless the woman were connected to his real father. "I mean my real father. I want to know who my real father is."

"Persi and Aggie raised you, didn't they? That makes them your real parents. It's the same as how our Father in Heaven has adopted us and made us His sons. He does it out of love, and His love is real. So is your parents'."

"Why won't anyone tell me who my real father is?" Alexander asked.

"Perhaps nobody knows. I don't. Now, is there anything else I can help you with?"

"I guess not."

 

The guard was nervous. He was in the baron's study being questioned, and he couldn't understand why. When he had turned that boy away yesterday, he had thought nothing of it. He had reported it to his officer like he was supposed to, had received the usual grunt of acknowledgement, and had forgotten about it. This morning, however, the baron himself wanted to know every detail.

"How old do you think the boy was?" asked Kristoff.

"About seventeen."

"Not eighteen? Or sixteen?"

"Maybe sixteen."

"Maybe sixteen, or certainly sixteen?"

"I'm not sure, Sir."

"What was his hair color?"

"Dark, I guess."

"What shade of dark?"

"I think it was black."

"Think harder. I want you to be certain."

The guard closed his eyes and thought. "Black. It was black."

"Eyes?"

"Those were dark, too. Brown."

"How was he dressed?"

"I didn't take much notice, Sir." The guard felt hot.

"Did he look like a servant, like a tradesman, or like a gentleman?"

"Tradesman." The guard's hands were clammy.

"Did he give his name or explain his business?"

"No, Sir. All he said was that he wanted to talk to a woman. I can't remember her name right now. The nanny?"

"Ida."

"Yes, Ida. But he didn't know her name."

Kristoff leaned back in his chair. "Alright. You can go. You're not in trouble. If he shows up again, don't let him in."

"Yes, Sir." The guard left.

Kristoff pulled out the bishop's note and read it again. "Alexander was here. He saw Ida deliver this month's payment and followed her to the castle. He asked about his father. I didn't tell him anything." Kristoff folded it up and tossed it into the fire. There was no sense in keeping evidence around. Bishop Mikael had understood that, but he had passed away years ago. Bishop Sigurd didn't understand, but Kristoff had never explained Alexander's parentage, and he doubted that Sigurd had guessed.

Kristoff went to the nursery to look for Ida. When he arrived, his two youngest daughters, five-year old Lotte and four-year old Helena, ran to greet him. "Papa!" they shouted.

Kristoff picked up Helena and kissed her head. "Hi there, cutie," he said. He put her down and did the same to Lotte. "Such a big girl! I can hardly pick you up anymore."

Ida said, "Your Lordship, how may I help you?"

Helena said, "Papa, come play castle with us. Lotte is queen, I'm the princess, Elisabet is our servant, and Markus is the baby. You can be the prince." Elisabet, five years old, was Ida's second child, and Markus, two years old, was her third.

Kristoff hadn't intended to spend his afternoon playing with his daughters, but he had always had trouble denying them anything. "In a moment," he said. "First I need to talk to your nanny. Ida, did you notice anything unusual yesterday when you delivered this month's stipend?"

Ida looked around out of habit. She had been delivering Alexander's stipend ever since he had been placed with his new family, and in that whole time she had never discussed him except with the adults of the royal family. "No Sir, everything seemed normal."

"Alexander watched you yesterday."

Ida was taken aback. "He knows?"

Kristoff shook his head. "Not the details. He knows that someone at the castle is paying for him, and he knows that the money goes through the church. What worries me is that he knows that you're the one who makes the delivery. After you returned yesterday, he approached the gate and asked about you. Then he asked the bishop about you."

"What do you want me to do, Sir?"

"He might approach you, either on the street or the next time we open up the castle for an event. If he does, deny everything. He may find out some day, but I'd still like to put it off."

 

Ida tried to avoid leaving the castle grounds, but Elsa wanted the children to leave the gates and visit the city at least once a week, and the younger children needed supervision. "Go out anyway," instructed Elsa. "We don't have any reason to think Alexander is dangerous, but do you want an extra guard?"

"No, Ma'am, I'm sure we'll be fine."

Ida led the whole party of children into the city. The older children, Mathias, Elias, Jakob, Emma, Maria, and Sara, were supposed to help monitor the younger ones, Benjamin, Lukas, Ingrid, Sofia, Lotte, and Helena, as well as Ida's children, Lars, Elisabet, and Markus. Ida pushed the stroller carrying Godfrey and Beatrice. A bored guardsman followed behind.

The crowd of seventeen children and one adult were an unmistakable sight in Arendelle's streets. The royal children were boisterous and popular. Even in winter, citizens stopped to greet them wherever they went. They began to make a tour of the city, first going down to the docks, then by the cathedral, and continuing through the marketplace, which was mostly empty at this time of year.

Alexander had been watching the castle every moment he could spare in hopes of getting a chance to talk to the woman. He had also been counting down the days until the queen's birthday festival, which would be the next time the public was invited to the castle. That day, however, one of his father's clients had come in to be fitted for a new coat, and since his father was out buying more cloth, he was taking measurements. Alexander was facing away from the window when the crowd of children stopped in front of his father's shop. "Looks like the royal family is out for a walk today," said the customer.

"Hm?" said Alexander, looking up. As he turned his head to the window, he recognized Ida and gasped. He dropped his tape measure. "Excuse me," he said, regaining his poise and fetching the tape measure.

Outside, Benjamin said, "I want to go in! I want to see him make a suit!"

"No, Benjamin, let's not disturb him," said Ida. "There's a customer in there right now. Come along."

The customer said, "Aren't they just marvelous? God's very own."

"Uh? Right, of course. We love them," Alexander managed. He tried to return his attention to taking measurements, but he was distracted. He knew who the woman was now. If she was that close to the royal family, then he must be right. Baron Kristoff was his father.

 

Elsa hadn't quite reconciled herself to the growing number of candles that appeared every year on her birthday cake. She wasn't quite forty yet. There would be no denying forty. This year, at least, she could redirect everyone's attention to Godfrey and Beatrice.

Elsa's birthday was a good excuse for her to open the castle. She was an introvert, and she knew it, but she still loved meeting her subjects. Public events like this one were more enjoyable than high-society balls. Those were like business, she thought. Everyone watched her to see who she would talk to and what she would say, not surprising considering that she was richer and more powerful than almost anyone in Europe, but also not relaxing. Her subjects, however, adored her. They had no malice and little duplicity.

Elsa reflected that she had never given her subjects a particular reason to love her as much as they did. She had been sure that the destruction caused by her accidental winter had made people resent her, and when the rebellion happened she had doubted herself. Since then, however, Arendelle had become legendary for its devotion to her. After the rebellion, she heard reports that she was sometimes called Queen Elsa the Merciful, because of her treatment of the rebels, or Queen Elsa the Blessed, because of her rescue by Cob. She supposed that if she had done anything for Arendelle since then, it was through prayer. The rest had been keeping the peace and letting the people make themselves prosperous, which hadn't been too hard.

Elsa expected to see Alexander again today. The first time he and his new family had visited the castle, she had been surprised. Elsa had declared a festival in celebration of the end of the rebellion and had opened up the castle to the people. Elsa, Cob, Anna, and Kristoff had been receiving guests, and Persi and Aggie had been waiting in the receiving line with Alexander. Alexander had exclaimed, "Hello Princess Anna!" when he saw her. Anna had maintained her composure. Afterwards, the four of them agreed that Persi and Aggie didn't seem to know who Alexander was. Bishop Mikael hadn't just found a loyal family; Persi and Aggie seemed to adore the monarchy, and they wanted their new son to adore it, too. They were regulars, coming to the castle at every opportunity, and they always brought Alexander with them. Until now, Alexander had been just like any other guest. Elsa wondered if today would be different.

The receiving line was often slow. Most of her subjects only wanted to greet her and her family, but when someone wanted to talk to her she tried to listen, at least for a little while. Young couples asked her to bless their marriage, conniving debtors wanted her to interfere with ongoing legal proceedings, country dwellers told her they had always wanted to see their queen in person, every one was different. There was a crippled man, Knut, whom she loved to see. The first time he had shown up, he had broken down in tears upon meeting her. She had felt pity for him and hugged him, and he had sobbed even louder. He had lost an arm in a carriage accident and been unable to continue his job as a longshoreman. He had always been a hard worker and had never needed assistance. He had been proud. But he had become a beggar, living off of her alms, and when he met her, the shame of it made him cry. After hearing his story, she found him a job as a janitor in a school. Now whenever Knut came to the castle she greeted him with a hug.

Elsa looked down the receiving line again, searching for Alexander. This time she saw him. It became hard to maintain her focus on the woman in front of her, an elderly lady who seemed to be lonely now that her husband had died. After the elderly lady, there was a family who was bringing their young son to meet her for the first time. She smiled as they instructed him to bow and address her and Cob as, "Your Majesty." Then there was a young man who was about to join the army, and next a sailor who said that he had wanted to meet the royal family for years but had never before been ashore at the right time.

When Elsa looked over again, Persi, Aggie, and Alexander were in front of Anna and Kristoff. She didn't even hear what the person in front of her was saying.

Persi said, "Good day, Your Majesty, Your Lordship," and bowed. Aggie curtsied.

"Good day to you, too," said Anna. "Persi, Aggie, how are you? How's the tailoring trade?"

"Excellent!" said Persi. "Never been better!"

Kristoff asked, "And how are you, Alexander?"

Alexander hesitated. There was so much that he didn't know. He didn't know if he had drawn the right conclusions, and the chance of having his belief crushed made all the other possible explanations for his parentage and for the money seem more likely than ever.

"Alexander?" said Aggie. "The baron asked you a question."

Alexander asked, "Are you my father?"

Persi and Aggie gasped. Aggie stammered, "Oh, I'm sorry Your Lordship, I'm so sorry, please accept our apologies." She tried to pull Alexander out of the line, but he didn't budge. "Come here, Alexander. Come here!"

"It's okay," said Kristoff.

"Your Lordship, please, we meant no offense. Please believe me."

"I'm more intrigued than offended," Kristoff said. "How did you come to this conclusion, Alexander?"

"The money comes from the castle."

"Is that all?"

"I'm the right age to be your child, if you had a lover before you married the princess."

"Anything else?"

Alexander shrugged. "You didn't give me much to go on, Papa."

Anna laughed despite herself. "When I met Kristoff, he wasn't exactly a love expert. I don't think he even knew how to father a child. Yes, we know who your father is. No, it's not Kristoff."

"Who is it, then?"

Kristoff and Anna looked at each other. Anna said to Alexander, "We decided a long time ago not to say."

Alexander clenched his fists, and he felt fury growing within him. "Why not?" he demanded.

Elsa stepped over and interrupted. "We should tell him."

"Are you sure?" asked Kristoff.

"We have to tell him some day."

Kristoff said, "Do we?"

"Didn't you want to know who your father was?" Turning to Persi, Aggie, and Alexander, Elsa asked, "How about the three of you visit us early tomorrow morning? We'll explain everything."

 

Alexander couldn't sleep that night. If he wasn't the baron's son, then whose son was he? He struggled with the question until dawn.

Early the next morning, Persi, Aggie, and Alexander left for the castle. They waited at the gate until Kai came to get them. Alexander asked him, "Do you know who I am?"

"Yes, I remember you," said Kai.

"Why does everyone except me know who I am?"

"Lucky for you, few of us do. I'll let them explain." Kai led Persi, Aggie, and Alexander to the sitting room. "They'll be here in a moment," he said.

Soon Elsa, Cob, Anna, and Kristoff entered. "Good morning," said Elsa. Persi, Aggie, and Alexander stood and greeted the royal family, and the seven of them sat down around the fire. "Let's begin," Elsa said. "Your mother really did die from childbirth. We can't tell you anything about her because we never met her. We became involved through your father. Alexander, you might not like what you hear today. You might decide that you didn't want to know who your father was. Are you sure you want to continue?"

"Yes," Alexander said.

"Before I tell you, I want to remind you that Persi and Aggie are your parents. They raised you. You can be like them. I want you to be like them. You don't have to be like your father. Is that clear?"

Alexander said, "I understand."

"You don't have to tell Persi and Aggie who your father is. Do you want them to leave the room?"

Aggie took Alexander's hand. "It's okay if you do," she said.

"No, it's fine. I shouldn't keep it from you anyway." To Elsa, he said, "I'm ready."

"Okay." Elsa took a deep breath. "He was Friedrich of Telramund, the usurper."

Aggie gasped. She said, "Oh my God. Oh my God. We had no idea. Oh my God."

Persi had turned pale. He covered his mouth with his hand. Cob asked, "Are you alright?" Persi shook his head. He lunged for the fireplace, where there was a bucket of water for putting out fires, and vomited in the bucket.

Aggie was crying. "It can't be true. It can't be," she sobbed.

Anna said, "It's true. Telramund wanted to marry me so that Alexander would have a mother. He loved you, Alexander."

Alexander was quiet. Kristoff asked him, "How are you feeling?"

"Why didn't you just kill me?" Alexander asked.

Kristoff said, "You didn't deserve to die. You were a young boy who liked reindeer. You did nothing wrong."

"What if I wanted revenge? Especially revenge on you, Your Highness," he said to Cob, "because if I know the history right, you killed my father."

"I did kill your father," said Cob, "with the queen's permission. He was threatening to kill Princess Emma at the time. I wasn't part of the decision to spare you. Elsa?"

Elsa said, "I thought that if we found you the right home, you could grow up to be a good man."

Kristoff said, "I asked Bishop Mikael to find a home for you. He found Persi and Aggie. You should consider them to be your real parents."

"What about the money?" asked Alexander.

"It was easier to place you that way, and it gave us an excuse to check on you. If Mikael had placed you with a bad family, the deacon would have discovered it, and we would have had you moved. Let me add, Persi and Aggie, that you are not to start mistreating him now."

Persi, who had returned to his chair but still looked queasy, managed to shake his head. "No. Of course not," he said in a thin voice.

"I still don't understand why," said Alexander.

"You were innocent," said Elsa.

"That's all?"

"Yes, that's all."

"My father tried to usurp the throne and kill you, and you provide for me?"

"'I was hungry and you gave me something to eat; I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink,'" Elsa quoted. "You were helpless. I hope that God strikes me down before I order the execution of an innocent boy. I gave amnesty to people who did worse."

"I wouldn't have been helpless if you hadn't--" Alexander stopped himself. "If my father had been alive."

"You can say it. If we hadn't killed your father. But your father killed most of the castle guards, and he planned to kill me. He was defeated, I offered him exile, and he threatened to kill Emma. He lived by the sword, and he died by the sword. I didn't know what else I could have done for him, but I thought I could still help you." The clock chimed. "It's time for morning prayer," she said. "Would you care to join us?"

Persi mopped his forehead with a handkerchief. He said, "We'd be honored, Your Majesty. Thank you."

Throughout prayers, Alexander was seething. Who were they to take his father from him? Maybe his father had been right. Maybe the queen should have been deposed. For a queen who claimed to follow Christ, he thought, Elsa was disgustingly self-righteous.


	8. Chapter 8

Elsa sneezed again. Nobody wrote books on magic anymore. This one was even dustier than the last one she had acquired.

Until Beatrice's magical powers had begun to manifest, Elsa had never felt any need to research magic. Books on magic were always by and for people with no magical abilities, and every one she had read was trash. They were filled with descriptions of rituals and chants and spells and summonings. She doubted that anyone with a head on their shoulders had ever believed that such nonsense worked. Her powers were so much more straightforward than that. Snow and ice responded to her whims the same way that her arms and legs did.

Elsa had been searching for a cure for Beatrice's magic for years, but nothing that she had read so far had even mentioned the powers that she and Beatrice shared. She slumped in her chair and toyed with her braid. Godfrey and Beatrice had turned seven last winter. She was beginning to think that her search was useless. Beatrice would be stuck with magical powers.

Elsa had noticed that she could feel when Beatrice used magic. It was the same rush of feeling that Elsa got from magic, only fainter. Elsa felt that power stirring now, so she got up, leaving the book open on the table. It would be there for when she felt less frustrated. At least, she thought to herself, Beatrice and Godfrey had each other. Whatever they did, they did together. Games, drawings, lessons, prayers, all of it was done in tandem. It was an even closer relationship than Elsa and Anna had shared. Elsa hoped that Beatrice's love for Godfrey would help her keep her magic under control.

Elsa also hoped that the love of God would help Beatrice to control her magic. Both Beatrice and Godfrey were religious. Ida never had to chase them down to convince them to come to prayers or, on Sundays, to worship. They would sit next to each other and hold hands during the service. On Sundays, after the family returned from the cathedral, they would often go to the chapel and read their Children's Bible together. Their devotion made Elsa proud, though she knew that it wasn't her doing. None of the other children were as religious as Godfrey and Beatrice, and she had raised them the same way.

When Elsa found Godfrey and Beatrice, they had packed a mountain of snow against one wall of the ballroom, the same as Elsa and Anna had once done. As they sledded down the slope, they squealed with excitement. It made Elsa think of how it had been to play with Anna, and the memory of their accident once again struck terror in her heart. As the sled came to a stop, Elsa waved her hand, and the snow gathered together into a little ball and vanished with a pop. "That's enough," said Elsa. "It's too much snow."

"Sorry, Mama," said Beatrice.

"Beatrice, it's okay to use your magic, but you must be careful. You could hurt someone."

"I know you don't like it, Mama. Sorry."

"It's fine. You can use your magic. Just keep it small, okay?"

"No, Mama, I'll be good. I won't make any more snow."

Elsa got down to Beatrice's level and held Beatrice's hands. "Your magic is a gift from God just like mine. It's okay to use your talents. You just have to be careful."

 

It was a few weeks later that Beatrice announced to Cob, "I don't want to use magic anymore. Mama doesn't like it."

Cob looked up from his newspaper. He had always disagreed with Elsa about Beatrice's magic. "Really? I like it when you use magic. Do you want to build a snowman with me?"

Beatrice shook her head. "Mama always says I use too much magic. So I'm not going to use any magic. I'm going to be just like Godfrey, and she'll be proud."

"Why do you want to be just like Godfrey?"

Beatrice's face became downcast. "He didn't want to play with me yesterday. He said he wanted to play knights, and I said I wanted to play dolls, and then he said he wanted to play alone. And Mama said that if he wanted to play alone then I should let him."

"You think that Godfrey will want to play with you if you don't use magic?"

Beatrice shook her head. "Mama will tell him to play with me if I don't use magic."

Cob was unsurprised. It was the sort of logic he had come to expect from seven year olds. "Come here," said Cob. He lifted Beatrice into his lap. "Sometimes even your best friend wants to be alone. If he does, then you should let him. Okay?"

"I want to play with him."

"You know what 'no' means. I know you do. So if he says 'no,' then what does that mean?"

"He doesn't want to play with me."

"Right."

"But I want to play with him!" Beatrice whined.

"You can't make him play with you."

"You and Mama can. Will you tell him to play with me, Papa?"

"No. Sweetheart, sometimes you can't have everything."

 

Over the next month, it became clear that Godfrey and Beatrice were beginning to lead different lives. They were still very close, and they still played with each other often, but they were no longer inseparable. "I'm relieved," Elsa admitted to Cob. "They had to start doing different activities sooner or later."

One Sunday afternoon, Godfrey and Beatrice were playing tag in the castle when Godfrey called, "Time out." He sidled up to Beatrice, looked around, and whispered, "Do you want to go sledding in the ballroom?"

Beatrice looked for her Mama but didn't see her. Still, she shook her head. "I don't want to make snow."

"Please?"

"No."

"I thought you wanted to play with me."

"I'm not making any more snow ever."

Godfrey was shocked. "Never?"

"Never."

"Don't you want to play in the snow?"

"Yeah."

"Then let's go make snow."

"I can't," Beatrice whined. "Mama doesn't like it."

"Mama makes snow."

"But Mama doesn't want me to make snow." Her face was turning red. 

"Mama will say it's okay if we ask her." Godfrey grabbed Beatrice's hand. "Come on."

"It'll make Mama mad."

"No it won't."

"I don't want to!" Beatrice yanked her hand away.

"But you like making snow!"

"No I don't! Stop it!"

Now Godfrey's face was also turning red. "You're no fun! I don't like you anymore!" he shouted.

"Don't say that!"

"I hate you!" Godfrey yelled.

"I hate you too!" Beatrice screamed. Ice shards shot out from all sides of her. One of the shards landed in Godfrey's heart. He gasped, clutched his chest, and fell to the ground.

Beatrice wiped tears from her face. "Godfrey?" she asked. Godfrey wheezed. "Godfrey?" she said louder. She knelt next to him. "Are you okay?" He shook his head. Beatrice hugged him. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I didn't mean to hurt you!" Beatrice looked around. There were no grownups. "Mama!" she called. "Mama, Mama! Help!"

Elsa had felt Beatrice's outburst, and she came running. "Beatrice? What's going on?"

"It was an accident, Mama. I didn't mean it."

Elsa saw Godfrey on the ground and knew what had happened. She got angry. "Beatrice! I told you to be careful with your magic!"

"I'm sorry, Mama!" Beatrice began to cry. "I didn't mean it. I didn't mean it at all. It was stupid. I was stupid." She held Godfrey's head and kissed him. "I'm sorry, Godfrey. Please forgive me."

Elsa knelt next to Godfrey. "Stay back," she said to Beatrice, pushing her away from Godfrey. "Godfrey? Are you awake?"

Godfrey nodded. "I'm here, Mama. I'm sorry. I started it."

"Don't say that. It's not your fault."

"No, Mama, I started it. I made her mad."

Elsa picked Godfrey up. "Let's not worry about that right now. Beatrice, come with me. We have to find your Papa."

 

Elsa and Cob rode to the Valley of the Living Rock as fast as they could, carrying Godfrey and Beatrice in their arms. When they arrived, they leaped down from their horses, and before their feet were on the ground, Elsa was already calling, "Grand Pabbie! Are you here? Please help!"

The valley rumbled as the trolls came out of hiding. The trolls knelt before Elsa and Cob. "Your Majesty," they greeted her.

"Where is Grand Pabbie?" Elsa asked.

Grand Pabbie rolled up. "Your Majesty," he said, bowing. "I fear I already know why you are here."

"Godfrey is hurt the same way Anna was. Can you help him?" Godfrey was shivering and leaning on Elsa.

Grand Pabbie shook his head. "I cannot. The ice is in his heart. The wound is not as big as the one in Anna's heart was, but it is still deadly. He will survive for a little while, but like Anna, he needs an act of true love."

"Where are we going to find an act of true love?" Elsa asked.

"That I do not know," said Grand Pabbie.

Beatrice asked, "Can I help?"

Elsa scowled. "No, you've done enough, Beatrice."

"But I love him, Mama!" Beatrice tried to hug Godfrey, but Elsa pushed her away.

"Beatrice, I said that's enough."

"I love you, Godfrey," said Beatrice. "Please don't die. I'm sorry."

Grand Pabbie said, "Your Majesty, if I may offer you a suggestion." He turned to Cob. "You know a way to save him, Your Highness. He was destined to go there anyway."

Elsa gaped. "What do you mean?" she asked. "Cob, how do we save him?"

Cob asked Grand Pabbie, "How do you know?"

"You don't? I guess these things are kept from humans. Yes, I know. He'll go someday. I don't know if this is the time."

Elsa asked, "What's going on? How do we save Godfrey?"

Cob took Elsa's hand and intertwined his fingers with hers. Looking at Godfrey, he said, "I leave. And take him with me."

"Leave and go where?"

"Home. My kingdom."

"And then?"

Cob shook his head. "He'll live, but we can't come back."

Elsa said, "Of course you can come back. You came here once already."

"No, we can't come back. Ever."

"That can't be."

"It has to be."

Grand Pabbie interrupted, "Your Majesty, he speaks the truth. Godfrey will live, but they cannot come back."

"I can't lose both of you. Oh God, that would be too much to bear. There must be another way."

Grand Pabbie said, "Then I hope you find it, Your Majesty."

 

The next morning, the mood at the castle was despondent. Cob sent a letter to Mathias, his and Elsa's eldest son and now a first lieutenant in the Royal Army, asking him to take leave and return home. Anna sent a letter to Emma, who was visiting her fiance in the kingdom of Corona, telling her to return as quickly as she could.

Godfrey was still strong enough to walk, but now and then he had uncontrollable shivers. Elsa took care of him herself, helping him to bathe, to dress, and to eat. She refused the servants' help. "I'm his mother," she said. "If my son is dying then I need to take care of him." She kept the fire in his room burning hot and covered him in blankets. Cob stayed in the room and offered to help, but she insisted on doing everything herself. Beatrice sat outside Godfrey's room in the hallway. She had asked to come in and sit with Godfrey, but Elsa, who was still angry at her, had told her to stay out.

At first, Elsa and Cob tried to think of an act of true love that would save Godfrey. Nothing seemed promising. He was in no position to sacrifice himself the way that Anna had. He loved his family, but that was a feeling, not an act. He was too young to feel romantic love. Elsa was already mothering him with as much love as she had.

When Elsa and Cob had run out of ideas for how to save Godfrey, they tried to make conversation with Godfrey and with each other. After a few hours they ran out of things to say. Neither Elsa nor Cob wanted to leave Godfrey's side, so they spent their moments in tired, desperate silence.

That afternoon, Godfrey said, "Mama, I want to see Beatrice."

Elsa said, "I don't think that's a good idea, Godfrey."

"Please, Mama. It was my fault."

Cob said, "It might make him feel better. And there's no point in keeping them apart now."

Elsa grimaced. "Fine, then," she said. She opened the door to the hallway. "Beatrice? Godfrey wants to see you."

Beatrice crept into the room. Godfrey said, "Beatrice, come here." She approached his bed, and he held out his hand. "I forgive you. Will you forgive me?"

"Yes," Beatrice said. They held hands. "I'm sorry, Godfrey."

"It's okay," Godfrey said. "I love you."

"I love you, too."

Elsa and Cob watched them. Elsa felt a flicker of hope. Maybe Beatrice and Godfrey's vows of forgiveness were the act of true love that he needed.

"Will you stay with me?" Godfrey asked.

"Until the end," Beatrice said.

Elsa watched them, waiting for Godfrey to warm up. She didn't know what that would look like, and she didn't want to spoil Godfrey and Beatrice's moment by checking his temperature. She hoped he would start sweating.

Elsa was conscious of the ticking clock. She counted the seconds. Five seconds. Ten. Thirty. Beatrice and Godfrey let go of each others' hands, and Beatrice sat on the bed next to Godfrey. Elsa touched her hand to Godfrey's forehead. It was still cold.

 

Late that evening, Anna came by. "How are you doing?" she asked.

"I don't know what to do," said Elsa. "Where do we find an act of true love?"

"I meant, how are you doing?" Anna asked, emphasizing the word "you."

"I'm fine. Don't worry about me."

"You need to remember to get rest." To Cob, Anna said, "You too. Neither of you will be any help if you're tired."

"I'll stay with him," said Elsa. "You get some rest."

"I was going to say the same thing," Cob said.

"I'll sleep on the couch."

Cob said, "You know, I think I'll just have a second couch brought in here."

Anna said, "No, that's a terrible idea. You need to sleep in a bed, both of you."

Elsa said, "I'm fine right here."

"No, you're not. You need a bed."

"Alright," said Cob. "We'll sleep here in shifts. We trade off at midnight. Okay?"

"Okay," said Elsa.

 

By Tuesday, rumors of Godfrey's illness had begun to spread in the city. Kristoff directed the guards to tell inquirers that Godfrey had been injured in an accident while playing with his sister. Crowds of well-wishers left flowers or lit candles at the castle gates. That evening, Elsa saw that Godfrey's hair had begun to turn white. The white hair didn't stand out against his natural blond, and Elsa cursed herself for not having noticed it sooner.

Wednesday morning, Mathias arrived. He went straight to Godfrey's room. "Godfrey?" he asked as he entered.

Elsa embraced Mathias. "It's good to see you," Elsa said.

Cob said, "Come here and talk to your brother."

Mathias sat down on the edge of the bed. "How are you feeling, little brother?" he asked.

"I'm okay," Godfrey said.

"Good, good. Hungry? Thirsty?" Godfrey shook his head. "Bored?"

Godfrey nodded. "I have to stay in bed where it's warm, but there's nothing to do."

"How about I read to you?"

"Papa already did that."

"Want to play a game?"

Elsa interrupted. "He needs to stay under the covers."

"Oh. Hmm. I'm sure we can think of something to do. Tell you what, I need to take care of a few things. I'll come back in a little while. Okay?"

"Okay, big brother." Godfrey smiled.

 

Cob explained the situation to Mathias in Elsa's study. Cob said, "Since we can't think of any other way to save him, I'm afraid I'm going to have to leave."

"And not come back. You're sure?"

"Yes. Your mother will be heartbroken. Anna and Kristoff will take over her duties while she mourns. They've already been doing that for the past few days. But you're the heir, and you're almost of age, so if Elsa is unable to govern then you need to share in the responsibility."

"I understand. I'll tell the army that I'll be unavailable for the next few months."

"It might be more than months. I don't know how long it will take your mother to recover. She hasn't taken this well."

Mathias nodded. "It's been her worst fear for a long time."

Cob began, "Yes, so when I leave--" but he stopped. "If I leave, it could be a long time before she's able to rule without help. You should prepare yourself to be away from the army for a year. That should give her time."

"I don't want you to go, Papa."

"I know. I'm going to miss everyone."

 

That evening, the cathedral held a special worship service to pray for Godfrey's recovery. Mathias, Maria, Jakob, and Sofia went as representatives from the royal household. The service was somber. The four royal children sat in the front row, Mathias in his army uniform and the others dressed in black. Many people came up to them after the service and said they would be praying for Godfrey. "Thank you," Mathias would always say, "we need your prayers."

When Elsa awoke from her place on the couch on Thursday morning, however, Godfrey's hair was pure white. His fingers seemed to glisten. She leaned over him to inspect them. They were dotted with tiny crystals of ice.

Elsa found herself overcome with grief, and she began to sob. "Godfrey," she moaned, "don't die. Please don't die."

Godfrey's eyes cracked open. "Mama? What's wrong?" he asked.

"You're not going to die, okay? Mama's going to save you. She doesn't know how, but she's going to save you. Okay? Don't worry. There's nothing for you to worry about." Elsa collapsed into tears again.

"Don't cry, Mama!" said Godfrey as he threw his arms around Elsa's neck. "Please don't cry."

"You have to stay all the way under the covers," Elsa said. She tucked Godfrey's arms back underneath the blankets. Then she sniffled and wiped her eyes. "You have to stay warm. Okay?"

"I'm tired of trying to stay warm," Godfrey said.

"I know. We'll work out something better soon, okay?"

"Mama, you don't have to say things like that to me. I know what's happening."

Elsa sniffled again. "I know you know, dear. But if Mama doesn't say things like that, she won't be able to bear the pain."

 

All week, Cob had avoided talking to Elsa about leaving. That afternoon, he brought it up again. He sat down on the couch next to her and said, "We need to think about taking him to my kingdom."

"I don't want to consider it," Elsa said.

"I know you want to save him," Cob said. "It might be the only way."

"I'd lose both of you. It feels worse than losing just him."

"Except he'd be alive. We don't have any other way of saving him."

"I know." Elsa leaned her head on Cob's shoulder and held his hand. "You've made me so happy. I'm afraid to lose you."

"I don't like it either. But you'll still have Anna, Kristoff, Olaf, and the other children."

"But not you, and not Godfrey."

"Will you at least consider it?"

"I'll think about it."

 

That evening, Emma and her fiance, Eugene Fitzherbert IV, arrived. Anna and Kristoff greeted them at the castle gates.

"How are you, cutie?" asked Kristoff as he embraced Emma.

Emma said, "I'm okay, Papa. But what about Godfrey?"

Kristoff choked up for a moment. "Dying."

Eugene said, "You have my sympathies."

"Thanks. And thanks for coming."

"Emma has to be here for Godfrey, and I have to be here for her," Eugene said. He shrugged. "Everything else can wait."

"Thank you," said Anna. "Come on. We'll take you to them."

 

Emma was shocked when she saw Elsa. Elsa's eyes were red and puffy, and her hair was disheveled. She must have been crying a moment ago. "Hi, Auntie," Emma said.

"Good evening, Your Majesty," said Eugene.

"Hi," said Elsa, not getting up from the couch where she sat.

"You look terrible," Emma said.

"Don't worry about me." Elsa tucked some stray hairs behind her ear. "I'll be okay. Talk to Godfrey."

Emma went to Godfrey's bedside. His skin was covered in frost now, and he was shivering despite being under a stack of blankets as deep as Emma's forearm. "Godfrey," she said. "How are you?"

"Cold," Godfrey said.

Emma reached under his blankets to give him a hug. "We'll work out something," she said, but his body felt like ice.

Godfrey shook his head. "Nothing's working," he said. "I'm getting colder."

 

A little later, Anna and Kristoff called Emma and Eugene into the sitting room. "It's good that you came, Eugene," said Kristoff. "I'll be frank with you. You have to put off the wedding."

Eugene nodded. "Godfrey is going to die, isn't he? And the wedding is only a month away, and it would be inappropriate."

"Yes. We'll need to mourn for a while. But we wanted to mention another possibility to you. Cob might leave and take Godfrey with him."

"What?" asked Emma. "What do you mean?"

"He might go home, to his kingdom. He says that there's a way to save Godfrey there. But he also says they can't ever come back. Even though they'd be alive, we'd lose him and Godfrey."

"That's almost as bad," said Emma.

Anna nodded. "So even if Godfrey doesn't die, you would need to put off the wedding."

"I see," said Eugene. "How long do you want us to wait?"

"A few months, I'd say. The real question is how Elsa handles it."

"Is there anything we can do for her?"

"We can pray," said Anna. "That's all we have left."

 

The next morning, Elsa was reading her Bible when Godfrey said to her, "Mama? I'm ready to leave."

Elsa looked over at the bed, then back down at her Bible. She shut it. "Mama doesn't want you to leave."

"I know, Mama. But it's time."

Elsa laid her Bible aside and sat on Godfrey's bed. His hands and feet had turned blue overnight. She stroked his forehead. It was freezing cold. "I can't lose you," she said.

"I have to go."

"I know. I guess I've known for days, but I'm scared."

Godfrey said, "Mama, I'll always love you."

Elsa leaned down and kissed Godfrey's cheek. "Thanks, Godfrey. I'll always love you, too." Elsa sat up. "Beatrice, go and get your father."

A few minutes later, Beatrice returned with Cob. Cob asked, "What's going on?"

Elsa said, "You need to take him away."

Cob sat on the bed next to Elsa and held her hands. "Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"Ask."

Elsa hesitated, but then the words came out in a rush. "What is your name, and where are you from?"

Cob said, "Let's assemble the whole city. I want to tell everyone."

 

Heralds were sent throughout the city. Everyone was told to come to the castle courtyard at noon: Prince Cob was to make an announcement. When noon came, the courtyard wasn't big enough for the number of people who wanted to get in. Cob told the guards to let people onto the battlements, but even then the crowd overflowed onto the bridge.

The entire royal family stood on the balcony overlooking the courtyard. Elsa, Cob, their children, including Godfrey wrapped in blankets; and Anna, Kristoff, and their children; plus Eugene. Godfrey's presence squelched rumors that he had already passed away, but his face and hands proved that he was at the point of death.

Cob went to the front of the balcony and raised his hands for silence. The murmurs of the crowd died away, and the people listened. He began, "There is a far away kingdom that few know exists. Not the most adventurous travelers, nor the boldest sailors, nor the most ambitious merchants have ever visited. It is surrounded by tall mountains that make it inaccessible by foot. There is a river, but it is blocked by impassable rocks. This kingdom is called Monsalvat. Men cannot enter or leave it of their own will. It is my home.

"We have no trade or industry in Monsalvat. There is only one thing, so important that we devote our whole lives to it. At the center of Monsalvat is a church. In that church stands a sacred relic, recaptured hundreds of years ago during the Crusades. It is the Holy Grail, the cup in which the blood of Christ was caught during His crucifixion. 

"The Grail is the source of all life in Monsalvat. It feeds us, it sustains us, it keeps us well. It provides us with every earthly thing that we need so that we may spend our days in prayer and contemplation.

"The Grail requires only one service from us. When someone is in need, it sends one of us out as a champion. While we are in the Grail's service, we cannot be harmed by any worldly power. We are granted strength, speed, and wisdom unattainable by any mortal. We are granted these powers to bring righteousness, not for our own glory or for that of Monsalvat. Because of that, these powers depart the moment our identities become known. When that happens, we are required to leave before the next sunset.

"I was sent here by the Grail. My charge was to rescue Queen Elsa of Arendelle from unjust imprisonment. I had seen in a dream that I would marry her. For these past twenty-one years she has given me more joy than I thought could be had on Earth. I have always wished that she could know my name.

"I am the prince of Monsalvat. My father, Parsifal, is its king. My name is Lohengrin.

"Now our son Godfrey is about to die. Elsa and I have agreed that I should take him to Monsalvat, where the Grail will heal him. We cannot return. Godfrey and I will depart you forever. When my father dies, I will take his place as king of Monsalvat. When I die, Godfrey will ascend to the throne.

"I love you, people of Arendelle, but I will not see any of you again on Earth. I pray that I see you all in Heaven."

Lohengrin stepped back from the edge of the balcony. He turned to Elsa and took her hand. He asked her, "Why are you crying?"

"I knew you were a prince," Elsa said. She threw her arms around him.

A voice shouted, "Go home! Get out of here!" Elsa looked down at the courtyard. "God is breaking up your family as punishment!"

Another voice shouted, "Alexander! What are you doing?" Elsa saw a scuffle in the corner.

"You're a murderer! An evil, sick murderer!" Alexander was screaming, red-faced with rage, while Persi and Aggie tried to quiet him. Guards were working their way through the crowd.

"Quiet!" said Persi, cupping his hand over Alexander's mouth. "Hold yourself together!"

A crowd of guards grabbed Alexander. As they dragged him away, he shouted, "God is avenging my father! He'll send you to Hell, and you'll burn forever! Murderer!"

Elsa said, "Kai, have the guards bring Alexander to us. Tell them he is not to be harmed."

 

A few minutes later, Alexander stood in front of the royal family. He was handcuffed and surrounded by guards. There was a small trickle of blood from his lip where one of the guards had disobeyed Elsa's order and struck him.

"You sounded angry, Alexander," said Elsa.

"Don't play games with me. You heard me."

"Do you really think that? That we murdered your father?"

"You tell yourself that it was necessary, that it was justice. You're lying to yourself. It doesn't matter whether it was justice. You killed him, and that makes you a murderer."

"I explained the situation to you once before. By your own reasoning, he committed murder, too."

"God judged him just as surely as He is judging you. My father answered for his crime. You are answering for yours. Just as my father was taken away from me, so your husband is being taken away from you."

"You think that my husband and my son's departure is God's punishment."

"Isn't it?"

"God doesn't promise us happiness on Earth. Sometimes it happens, but our real reward is in Heaven. My hope now is to be reunited with my family there."

Alexander's voice burst with fury. "God won't accept you into Heaven! He hates you! You're a remorseless monster!" Alexander strained under the guards' grip. "If it's your place to judge between life and death, then kill me. Kill me! Or am I not dangerous enough?" Alexander tried to leap at Elsa, but the guards held him back. "Haven't I proved I hate you? Do it! Prove me right!"

Elsa watched Alexander's body writhe under the guards' grip. Flecks of spittle covered his chin. He looked like an injured animal. She said, "I can't go back and change what I did. If it was a sin, then all I can do is pray for forgiveness. Good bye, Alexander. This is our last meeting. Guards, return him to his parents. He is free."

"You took my father from me!" Alexander shouted. "All I ever wanted was my father!" He began to cry. "I never got to know my father!"

Elsa said, "Sometimes I want my Papa too. I'll pray for you." She waved him away, and the guards removed Alexander.

Elsa sat down on a couch. She was breathing hard. She leaned forward and put her face in her hands. Lohengrin sat next to her and put his arm around her. She asked, "Did I do okay?"

"Marvelous," Lohengrin said.

Elsa leaned back onto the couch. "I'm so tired." Frost began to form on the couch underneath Elsa. She noticed it and said, "That hasn't happened in a long time."

Mathias sat down next to Elsa. "Mama, it's okay. We'll take care of everything."

"Good. Good. I'm not going to be myself for a long time."

 

That afternoon, as the sun began to set, all of Arendelle was gathered at the docks. The royal family stood by themselves at the end of a pier. The moment the sun touched the horizon, Elsa noticed something in the distance. As it came near she saw that it was a square of logs only a few feet wide. It was being pulled by a swan.

The swan pulled the barge up to the pier. Lohengrin said goodbye to Anna and Kristoff first. "I'm proud to have you as family," he told them. "Godfrey, say goodbye to your aunt and uncle."

Lohengrin and Godfrey said goodbye to each of Anna and Kristoff's children next, wishing Emma and Eugene a happy marriage. Then Lohengrin turned to his children. Lohengrin embraced Mathias and said, "You'll be a good king. Trust in God and He'll guide you."

"Thanks, Papa. I will."

To Beatrice, Lohengrin said, "Beatrice, your Papa loves you very much and is going to miss you. Will you give him a kiss goodbye?"

Beatrice shook her head. "Papa, I don't want you to leave."

"I know, sweetheart. We'll see each other again some day. Do you trust me?"

"I do, Papa." Beatrice kissed her father goodbye.

Godfrey asked Beatrice, "When am I going to see you again?"

Beatrice said, "I don't know."

"I'll wait as long as it takes." They embraced.

Last, Lohengrin said goodbye to Elsa. "You've been a blessing from God," he said. "I'll wait for you in Heaven."

Tears were falling from Elsa's eyes. She gazed at Lohengrin, then laughed. "I'm all out of words. You know how I feel about you. There's nothing more for me to say except that I'll miss you." She kissed him. She knelt to embrace Godfrey. "I'll miss you, too. Don't forget me."

"I'll never forget you, Mama. Good bye."

Lohengrin and Godfrey climbed onto the barge. As soon as they were steady on it, the swan pulled away from the pier. Elsa watched them shrink into the distance with silent prayers in her heart.

 

After her first night sleeping alone, Elsa moved to a new bedroom. It was a small, plain room with nothing in it except a bed for one person. "I can't stand the old room now," she explained. "It makes me think of him."

Longing for Lohengrin and Godfrey filled Elsa's thoughts. The sound of footsteps made her wonder if Godfrey had come back. She searched each delivery of letters for one from Lohengrin. Everything appeared gray and listless. After a week, she realized that she couldn't taste her food.

Elsa tried to continue her usual duties, but she couldn't focus. She would pick up a report or a letter, but after a sentence or two, her mind would drift. She would stare into the distance until some other distraction interrupted her. She would return to reading, but, having lost her concentration, she had to begin anew. Two sentences later, Lohengrin and Godfrey would come to mind again.

Elsa felt herself sinking into despair. She tried taking walks around the castle, but everywhere she went triggered memories of Lohengrin and Godfrey. Here was Lohengrin's seat at the dining table. Here was where Godfrey had skinned his knee. Here was the ballroom, where she had met Lohengrin for the first time. The castle was so thick with reminders that Lohengrin and Godfrey never left her thoughts. She felt ashamed that the rest of her family wasn't enough for her. No matter how much she reminded herself that she loved them, she felt like her heart had been torn in two.

One afternoon, Anna said to Kristoff, "She's not doing well. I think we need to do something."

Kristoff nodded. "But what? She'd only get angry if we tried to cheer her up."

"We need something she wouldn't turn down. Hmm." Anna thought for a while. "Oh. Of course," she said. "I know."

Anna had to restrain herself from skipping down the hall. She found Elsa in the library. Elsa was sitting in her favorite chair and staring out the window. Her face was blank.

"Elsa?" Anna sang. "I have an idea."

"Hm?" mumbled Elsa.

Anna grabbed Elsa's hand and pulled her upright. "Come with me."

"Huh? Where?"

"You'll see. Come on."

Anna led Elsa by the hand through the castle. When they rounded a familiar corner, Elsa halted. "No. I'm not going there."

Anna tugged on Elsa's arm. "You're not going there alone. I'm going with you."

"It reminds me too much of Lohengrin."

Anna said, "I know you've been staying away. Would he want you to do that?"

Elsa slouched. "I guess not."

"Then come on." Anna led Elsa to the chapel. They sat in a pew together. "I thought that you'd like it if we came here together."

Elsa was silent. The chapel was such a familiar place. She and her family had spent more hours here than she could count. She looked around, seeing it anew. It was gorgeous. But then Lohengrin and Godfrey came to mind again, and she wondered whether it was vain. Had all the time they had spent here been worth anything? "I thought it was simple," said Elsa.

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"I mean religion. Faith. I thought I knew how it worked, and I was wrong."

Anna wanted to keep Elsa talking, so she said, "Go on."

"I knew that God doesn't promise us anything on Earth, but it didn't feel like it. He'd given me Lohengrin, my children, the safety of the kingdom, everything. It made me feel like He was rewarding me, and I felt like if I remained devoted to Him, then He would keep rewarding me. I thought I believed in salvation when I really believed in haggling. Then Godfrey and Beatrice had their accident, and now I've lost my husband and one of my sons. If He had really been rewarding me for being faithful, then why would that happen? If prayers always healed, then, well, I prayed enough the week that Godfrey was sick. I think I was wrong. You can't haggle with God.

"I don't know why He blessed me so much, and I don't know why He chose to take my happiness away. When they left, I told myself that I'll see them again in Heaven. But will I? I've been presuming that I'll go to Heaven. And when I realized I had that presumption, I felt self-righteous, like I didn't deserve to go to Heaven." Elsa sighed. "I don't know anything any more. I don't know what God wants. I don't know if I should even bother."

Anna shook her head. "Of course you should bother. You're wrong about yourself. You weren't haggling all these years. You believed. I know you did. You loved God. You still do, even if you don't understand Him. Don't let your grief convince you of something that's not true." Anna reached for a prayer book. "I brought you here for a reason. I wanted to pray with you."

"You don't have to."

"Of course I have to. I'll do anything for you."

"I know it's not the same for you."

"When I do it with you, it's worth it."

"Are you sure?"

"Absolutely."

 

After that, Elsa and Anna prayed together in the chapel every day. When Beatrice learned what they were doing, she joined them. Elsa decided that Anna had been right. She did feel better when she prayed. She began to spend her time in the chapel. If she didn't feel happier, at least she felt less dreary.

Elsa also began to neglect her duties as queen. Since Lohengrin and Godfrey's departure, Elsa had tried but failed to do her duty to Arendelle. Now Elsa stopped trying. Letters went unopened. Reports went unread. Troops were without orders. As Elsa spent more time in the chapel, Mathias, Kristoff, and Anna began to take on more of the responsibilities of ruling.

Kristoff asked Anna, "Are you sure she's any better like this? She's almost a Carthusian hermit."

Anna said, "I know. But she seems calmer now. I think she's improving. She'll come back to us."

One morning a little while after that, Elsa went to her study for the first time in weeks. When she entered, Mathias was sitting behind her desk with some papers in his hand, Anna was leaning over his shoulder gesturing at the papers, and they were having an animated discussion about tariffs.

Mathias looked up. He said, "Mama. I wasn't expecting you." He got out of her chair. "Sorry. This is yours."

Elsa said, "It's fine, Mathias. Now, what were you talking about?"

As Mathias explained problems with collecting the tariffs on lumber and Elsa listened, Anna smiled. Her sister was back.

 

Elsa ruled for many years, and Arendelle continued to prosper. Lohengrin and Godfrey never left her heart. Elsa and Anna grew old and wrinkled. Kristoff's right leg became unsteady, and he walked with a cane. The children grew into adulthood, got married, and had children of their own. Beatrice, however, remainder alone, devoting herself to God.

Soon after Elsa turned 66, she called Anna, Mathias, and Kristoff into her study. "I'm going to abdicate," she said. "Mathias, you'll make a fine king."

"Why now, Mama?" Mathias asked.

"It's hard to put into words. I have this feeling. I've had it for a long time, and I haven't known what it was. But it's gotten stronger, and I know what it is now. I have something more important to do than be queen."

"Mama, you're a good queen. People will understand if you need a break. You can take a holiday."

"No, I'm done for good. I'm going to Monsalvat."

Mathias gasped. "Mama, no! You can't!"

"Yes I can. I have to."

Mathias was speechless. Kristoff asked, "Elsa, are you feeling okay?"

Elsa said, "I feel great. I'm going to see Lohengrin and Godfrey again."

Anna said, "Your children and grandchildren will miss you."

Elsa raised her eyebrows. "You go right for the throat."

"I don't want you to go."

Mathias had recovered his composure. He said, "Mama, you can't mean it. You live for Arendelle."

"I did. I love Arendelle. I still do. But Arendelle will be safe with you, and I have something more important now. I have a treasure, a pearl."

"You've always said that you were queen because God had made you queen. That you couldn't not be queen."

Elsa nodded. "I know. But if He made me queen, then He can unmake me queen. I've given it a lot of thought, and I can't resist any longer. He wants me to leave. 'No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.' I'll miss you all."

 

The abdication and coronation ceremonies were held together. Representatives from across the world attended, but Elsa made sure to reserve space in the cathedral for the people of Arendelle. When the Bishop removed the crown from her head, someone in the audience cried.

After the ceremony, the crowd proceeded to the docks. Just like when Lohengrin and Godfrey had left, the royal family stood alone at the end of a pier. Elsa said her goodbyes to her children, to her grandchildren, to Anna and Kristoff, to her nieces, nephews, grandnieces, and grandnephews. In the distance, a small barge approached, led by a swan.

Beatrice said, "I can hear someone singing. It's like, it's like--Godfrey?"

Elsa asked, "You hear him too?"

"Yeah. And I hear Papa and more people I don't recognize. Mama, can I come with you?"

"I think you should."

As the swan stopped the barge at the pier, there was a disturbance on the dock. Elsa heard someone crying out, "Wait! Wait!"

A lean middle-aged man pushed his way through the crowd and ran down the pier. "Wait!" he called again. He stopped in front of the royal family, panting and sweating. He got on one knee. "Your Majesty, I would like to apologize," he said.

Mathias asked, "Who are you?"

"You don't know?"

Elsa said, "I still recognize you, Alexander."

"Your Majesty," Alexander said, bowing his head, "I want to ask for your forgiveness. I was wrong to accuse you of murder. I wanted to know my real father, and I didn't realize that I already had him, so I let anger take hold of me, and I was foolish, and I said things I shouldn't have."

Two women, one middle-aged and one young, broke through the crowd and ran to Alexander. The middle-aged woman asked him, "Dear? What are you doing?"

"I'm so sorry, Your Majesty. I thought it was your fault because I still didn't understand. I thought I had everything figured out. But I got married, and I had a daughter, and I learned that I didn't know anything, and I still don't know much of anything."

"Alexander," said Elsa.

"You're so much wiser than I ever was, and--"

"Alexander!" Alexander stopped and looked up at Elsa. "You've had my forgiveness for a long time now. I was wrong, too. We should never have hidden the truth from you." She took his hands and drew him to his feet. "Congratulations on your marriage and your daughter." She gave him a hug. "Introduce me to them."

"Your Majesty, this is my wife Agathe and my daughter Vivian."

"Please to meet you, Agathe and Vivian. I'm sorry that I can't stay and get to know you."

Vivian said, "Papa thinks the world of you, Your Majesty."

"Your Papa is pretty special himself. He's a good man."

Alexander said, "Thank you, Your Majesty. Thank you so much." He backed away. "I won't keep you any longer."

"Good bye, Alexander, Agathe, and Vivian."

Elsa return to the end of the pier where the barge was. Anna was standing in front of the barge. They embraced. Anna said, "I know how much this means to you. Take care."

"You too, sis. I'll see you again some day."

"I can hardly wait."

Mathias helped Elsa and Beatrice onto the barge. The swan pulled away from the pier. As they sailed down the fjord, Elsa and Beatrice gazed back at their family and the people of Arendelle.

Elsa blinked, and everything changed. The barge was now in a valley surrounded by tall mountains, and they were floating down a river. The sun beamed bright upon the water. She turned around and admired the lush landscape around her. She took Beatrice's hand. "We're here," she said.

"Look, Mama," said Beatrice. She pointed into the distance. Elsa saw a pier and three figures waiting on it. She waved, and they waved back. As she neared the pier, Elsa recognized Lohengrin, now old like her. Her heart leaped. There was a woman next to him who looked like she must be his sister. The third figure was a handsome, grown man. "Mama! Beatrice!" he called.

"Godfrey!" Elsa called back. She cried tears of joy.

The End


	9. End notes

My notes are too long to fit into AO3's endnotes section, so I'm posting them as a separate chapter.

A Distant Shore is a retelling of the medieval legend of the Swan Knight. The Swan Knight legend has a long history and many variations. The general outline is as follows: A maiden is in trouble; the Swan Knight offers to save her, but she must agree not to ask his name or origin; eventually the maiden asks and he leaves. The knight is named some variant of Lohengrin (in German-influenced versions) or Elias (in French-influenced versions).

Early on, the Swan Knight legend was linked with the Swan Children folk tale. In this tale, a mother simultaneously gives birth to six boys and one girl. (And you thought Anna had a difficult birth!) Each is born with a gold (sometimes silver) chain around their neck. The jealous mother-in-law tells a servant to kill the children. The servant takes them away and, instead of killing them, abandons them in the forest where they are raised by a hermit. Some time later, a greedy servant manages to steal the chains from six of the children while they sleep. They immediately turn to swans. The remaining child rescues the others. The mother-in-law's treachery is discovered and she is executed.

The folk tales stop here. Medieval romances, however, linked them to the Swan Knight legend by turning one of the boys into the Swan Knight. In the variant where the mother is called Eloixe, the girl rescues her brothers, but one of the chains has been damaged, so the sixth brother cannot be returned to human form. The fifth brother will not leave him and so becomes the Swan Knight. In the variant where the mother is called Beatrix, it is a boy, Elias, who rescues his siblings, and he becomes the Swan Knight.

The earliest mention of the Swan Knight legend for which a date can be confirmed is a letter by Gui de Bazoches dated to about 1170. It also appears in a Latin prose work called Dolopathos dated to around 1190. An important reference occurs in the late 12th century history of the Crusades written by Guillaume, Archbishop of Tyre. Here the Swan Knight provides a supernatural ancestry for Godfrey of Bouillon, who lived in the late 11th century. Godfrey was one of the leaders of the First Crusade, and he was the first leader of the Kingdom of Jerusalem (though he refused the title King). Guillaume refers to this story as a well-known tradition. In none of these sources is the rescue of the maiden the primary focus.

Grail legends occupied a huge place in the medieval mind. The Grail seems to have first been conceived by Chretien de Troyes in his 12th century epic Perceval le Conte du Graal, but for him, the significance of the Grail was that it contained a Holy Communion wafer. Robert de Boron's late 12th century romance Joseph d'Arimathie turned the Grail into the cup which had caught Christ's blood, and it was in that form that the Grail legend became popular. The Grail was first connected to the Swan Knight by the 13th century German poet Wolfram von Eschenbach. In the very last lines of his poem Parzival, the titular hero is said to have fathered a son, Loherangrin (sic), who became the Swan Knight. In Von Eschenbach's telling, a maiden who rules over the land of Brabant refuses all offers of marriage. She swears she will only marry a man sent by God. The Swan Knight arrives and marries her, but her curiosity gets the better of her, she asks his origin, and he leaves. Von Eschenbach assumes that the listener knows who the Swan Knight is. In the late 13th century, a poet who called himself Nouhuwius or Nouhusius wrote a Lohengrin romance in which, for the first time, the Swan Knight rescues the maiden. In his telling, the maiden is named Elsam of Brabant, and Telramund is an unsuccessful suitor. Telramund pleads with the Emperor to force Elsam to marry him. The Swan Knight arrives to save her. Later, the jealous Countess of Cleves convinces her to ask her husband the fateful question.

I was inspired to place Frozen characters in this setting by Wagner's opera Lohengrin. Wagner's Elsa is nothing like Frozen's Elsa, but I found myself curious about the setup: What if Frozen's Elsa were saved by a mysterious stranger and married him?

Frozen's Elsa is a much stronger woman than Wagner's, mentally and magically. That makes the setup rather tricky. First of all, Elsa needs to be saved from something. Her magic is so powerful that it's hard to invent a situation where she needs saving. Second of all, she needs a reason to want to marry the stranger who saves her. She's much more grounded than Anna, and their experience with Hans would no doubt make them cautious about strange men.

My character of Telramund has no relation to Wagner's or to Nouhuwius'. Wagner's Telramund is married to a witch, Ortrud, and it's Ortrud who drives their scheme to take over the throne. The rebellion plot is my own invention. Every good villain needs motivation, of course, which is why Telramund is in love (in his own way) with Anna. Having Telramund pursue Anna also provides an opportunity to explore the sisters' devotion to each other.

Wagner's Telramund survives the trial by combat so that he can plot to destroy Lohengrin. My Telramund had outlived his purpose once Lohengrin had been introduced, and besides which, he wasn't the type of character to give up. (Notice that Borgstrom, another character of my own invention, reappears only briefly in chapter 6. He, too, has outlived his purpose.)

Wagner was attracted to religious imagery throughout his career, and the central conflict of his Lohengrin can be interpreted as Christianity versus paganism. Despite this, Wagner himself was not Christian. (While he promoted his last opera Parsifal as being Christian, it draws more from the philosophy of Arthur Schopenhauer than from Jesus. For example, Wagner has a crucified Jesus lay a curse on Kundry for laughing at him; this is a far cry from Luke's "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.") As a plot device, Christianity was excellent for my purposes because nothing can convince a person to reshape themselves the way religion can. Since the plot required that Elsa marry Lohengrin, and since the Swan Knight legend is historically a Christian legend anyway, having Elsa become religious made her marriage fall into place. This is, of course, an enormous change for her character, which is why her conversion took a quarter of the novel, some 13,000 words, to accomplish. (The reader may judge whether or not I succeeded. I'm sure some of you are unconvinced.)

Historically, Scandinavia has been Lutheran since the Reformation, so I made Elsa become Lutheran. That choice doesn't show up in a deep way. There's no discussion of the Real Presence of Christ in Holy Communion, nor justification by faith alone, nor Sola Scriptura, nor any other major Lutheran doctrine. The prayers were rewritten from an old (out of copyright) version of the Book of Common Prayer. The Bible verses are an amalgamation of several modern translations.

Having Elsa become religious presents another problem in the construction of the story: If she has true faith, why would she violate the Swan Knight's condition? Doesn't that show an astonishing lack of faith? Wagner's Elsa has no problem doing this. Frozen's Elsa would. She is, as I said above, too strong. The story needed a different ending, and since Elsa had already progressed from being non-religious to being religious, having her give up everything and leave Arendelle seemed a logical next step. Elsa is too resilient to leave Arendelle out of grief, and the Grail wouldn't have accepted her for that reason anyway, so it takes her a while.

Alexander could be removed from the story and the plot would still hold together, but I think the story would be more boring. He makes Telramund, Kristoff, and Elsa behave in interesting ways. The scene where he tells Lohengrin to go home is inspired by the denouement of Wagner's opera: Lohengrin has already announced his identity and is about to leave, and Ortrud, believing that she's won, crows about her triumph, thanking Elsa and telling Lohengrin to go home. The following scene is indebted to the story of Shimei in 2 Samuel 16:5-14 and 2 Samuel 19:16-23. Shimei was loyal to Saul, whom David overthrew. When David's son Absalom rebels and drives David out of Jerusalem, Shimei curses David for being a murderer. David could have him killed but instead shows mercy. While the context is different, that story was in my mind as I wrote that scene.

In chapter 4, I had originally made Elsa eat pickled herring because I like pickled herring. It turns out, however, that Elsa's love for pickled herring also appears in an officially licensed Frozen novel, Anna and Elsa #2: Memory and Magic, by Erica David. Creative Googling will get you a free sample of the book. Pickled herring appears in chapter 1.

Did you catch Elsa's Wicked reference? It's in chapter 5.

Lastly, I'd like to thank my wife for her patience with me. It's embarassing to be a grown man who loves Frozen so much that he writes fan fiction. This is one more thing that I can never repay. I love you, sweetie.


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